Beit Arbel and the Day of Battle

The prophet Hosea makes reference to a horrific time in Israel’s history when Shalmaneser invaded Israel from the North, massacring Jewish people in Beit Arbel, a Galilean village near Capernaum: “All your fortresses will be destroyed – as Shalman destroyed Beit Arbel on the day of battle, when mothers were slaughtered with their children” (Hosea 10:14).

The world has been seeing videos and photos of the massacres of kibbutzim, moshavim and towns in Israel’s western Negev. Though President Biden got his specifics slightly off, 40 babies were slaughtered, many of them also decapitated. Pregnant mothers had their bellies ripped open, and young children with hands bound were stacked on piles of tires and burned to death. Teenagers were raped between corpses of their friends, and 250 young Israelis attending a music festival were shot down in cold blood.

The prophet Micah knew what he was saying about such enemies: “Be in pain, and labor to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in travail . . . Now also many nations are gathered against thee, that say, ‘Let her be defiled, and let our eye look upon Zion.’ But they know not the thoughts of YHVH, neither do they understand His counsel. For He shall gather them as the sheaves into the [threshing] floor” (Micah 4:10-12). These cruel and bestial enemies are being gathered by YHVH to the threshing floor, to be thrashed and threshed and burnt. Messiah Yeshua speaks of the dynamics of this process: “His winnowing fork is in His hand to thoroughly clear His threshing floor, and to gather the wheat into His barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire” (Luke 3:17).

The prophet Ezekiel spoke of such things in his chapter 25:

And the word of YHVH came to me, saying, “Son of man, set your face against the sons of Ammon and prophesy against them . . . : “Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet, and have rejoiced with all the malice in your soul against the land of Israel, therefore, behold, I have reached out with My hand against you and I will give you as plunder to the nations. And I will cut you off from the peoples and eliminate you from the lands. I will exterminate you. So you will know that I am the Lord” . . . YHVH God says this: “Because Edom has acted against the house of Judah by taking vengeance, and has incurred great guilt, and avenged themselves upon them,” therefore this is what YHVH God says: “I will also reach out with My hand against Edom and eliminate human and animal life from it. And I will turn it into ruins; from Teman even to Dedan they will fall by the sword. And I will inflict My vengeance on Edom by the hand of My people Israel. Therefore, they will act in Edom in accordance with My anger and My wrath. So they will know My vengeance,” declares YHVH God.

The psalmist Asaph adds his prayer to this:

God, the heathen are come into Thine inheritance. Thy holy temple have they defiled. They have laid Jerusalem on heaps. The dead bodies of thy servants have they given to be meat unto the fowls of the heaven, the flesh of thy saints unto the beasts of the earth. Their blood have they shed like water round about Jerusalem; and there was none to bury them . . . Pour out Thy wrath upon the heathen that have not known Thee, and upon the kingdoms that have not called upon Thy name. For they have devoured Jacob, and laid waste his dwelling place . . . Wherefore should the heathen say, ‘Where is their God?’ Let him be known among the heathen in our sight by the revenging of the blood of Thy servants which is shed. Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee; according to the greatness of thy power preserve thou those that are appointed to die. And render unto our neighbors sevenfold into their bosom their reproach, wherewith they have reproached Thee, O Lord. So we Thy people and sheep of Thy pasture will give Thee thanks for ever: we will shew forth Thy praise to all generations (Psalm 79)

Take note that the God of Israel is not calling for proportionate response against His enemies:

In Psalm 79 sevenfold vengeance is called for

In Ezekiel the total destruction of God’s (and Israel’s enemies) is called for in prophecy.

The dragon’s attack on the chosen seed

What God has chosen to love, Satan has chosen to hate, kill and destroy, beginning with Pharaoh:

Then the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah, and the other was named Puah. And he said, “When you are helping the Hebrew women to give birth and see them upon the birthstool, if it is a son, then you shall put him to death; but if it is a daughter, then she shall live” . . . Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying, “Every son who is born, you are to throw into the Nile, but every daughter, you are to keep alive.” (Exodus 1:15-22)

The attempt to destroy Abraham’s and Jacob’s seed runs throughout history – past arch-enemies like Haman, Antiochus IV, the original jihadi terrorists, Bogdan Chmielnicki, Hitler, Stalin and now Hamas. This anti-Jewish genocidal plan will continue until the very end: “And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Messiah Yeshua” (Revelation 12:17).

One biblical surprise that is hidden from most believers is the fact that the God of Jacob has plans of His own to use the Jewish people in crushing their enemies à la Ezekiel 37:9-11 and Zechariah 12:1-9. In Jeremiah YHVH declares: “You are My war-club, My weapon of war! And with you I shatter nations, and with you I destroy kingdoms.” (Jeremiah 51:20). And in Ezekiel 25, the God of Jacob repeats it: “And I will inflict My vengeance on Edom by the hand of My people Israel.”

These prophesies bring to fulfilment the words spoken over Rebekah in Syria-Turkey, in Padan Aram, many years ago as her family laid hands on her. They spoke a prophetic blessing over her and she went off to marry Isaac and join in Abraham’s family tree: “And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her: ‘Thou art our sister. Be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them” (Genesis 24:60).

How should we then pray?

As tanks begin to roll, here are some bullet points to be praying about:

Pray for ‘Shock and awe’ to be successfully carried out by the IDF to thwart the years of planning that Hamas has done – tunnels, mines, commando teams whose job is to kidnap IDF soldiers, and to even make off with their dead bodies. Davidic divine strategies as in Psalm 144:1: “Blessed be YHVH my rock, Who trains my hands for war and my fingers for battle!”

Pray for clarity of strategy, purpose and resolve for Israel’s leaders to deal a final death-blow to Hamas in Gaza – total and unconditional surrender of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and total removal from Gaza for them both

Pray for revelation to Israel’s leaders that YHVH Himself gave Gaza to the tribe of Judah (see Joshua 15:20-47) and that this is Israel’s true biblical inheritance. Former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s disengagement under strong American pressure was key to leading us into this horrific situation. Here is a quote from 2005 – during the Israeli disengagement from Gaza – by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who warned Israel that disengaging from Gaza was not enough; the entire West Bank needed to be handed over to the PLO/Hamas: “Because the real point about Gaza is not to stop with Gaza. The President has been clear, we’ve been clear with the Israelis that it cannot be Gaza only” (U.S. Department of State Office of the Spokesman, Shannon, Ireland; June 17, 2005. Press briefing by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to the traveling press en route to Shannon, Ireland June 17, 2005)

Pray for the leaders of your nation to receive a revelation of God as the Captain of the armies of Israel (see 1 Samuel 17:45): “But David said to the Philistine, ‘You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a saber, but I come to you in the name of YHVH of armies, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.’”

Pray for minimal loss of life on all sides except for Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

Pray for revelation and clarity to be imparted by the God of Israel to the world intelligence community who have not yet understood what jihad is all about and are fogged as to how to deal with it decisively

Pray that God would hold back a regional war involving Hamas, Hezbollah, Syria, Iran, Turkey, the Yemenite Houthis and other superpowers

Pray for the physical rescue of the many Israelis (perhaps 165) who have been kidnapped

Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s prophetic Jewish army throughout the earth

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

Remember well what YHVH your God did

The God of Jacob wants the Jewish people to remember. Moses instructed Israel:

If you say in your heart, ‘These nations are greater than I; how can I dispossess them?’ – you are not to be afraid of them. You shall remember well what YHVH your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt: the great trials which your eyes saw and the signs and the wonders, and the mighty hand and the outstretched arm by which YHVH your God brought you out. YHVH your God will do the same to all the peoples of whom you are afraid (Deuteronomy 7:17-19)

YHVH tells His people to remember how in the past God gave them military victory over their enemies, in order that the whole nation would be encouraged in faith as they move in to defeat their present enemies.

God, we have heard with our ears – our fathers have told us – the work that You did in their days, in the days of old. You with Your own hand drove out the nations. Then You planted them. You afflicted the peoples; then You let them go free. For by their own sword they did not possess the land, and their own arm did not save them – but Your right hand and Your arm and the light of Your presence, for You favored them. You are my King, God! Command victories for Jacob! Through You we will push back our adversaries. Through Your name we will trample down those who rise up against us. For I will not trust in my bow, nor will my sword save me. But You have saved us from our adversaries, and You have put to shame those who hate us (Psalm 44:1-7)

Remembering in the key to redemption

Remembrance is the key to moving in exploits of faith. Rabbi Nachman of Breslov once said that “Forgetfulness leads to exile, but remembering is the key to redemption.” This principle is fleshed out by the German philosopher G.W. Hegel: “What experience and history teach is this – that nations and governments have never learned anything from history, or acted upon any lessons they might have drawn from it” (Georg Wilhelm Hegel, Lectures on the Philosophy of History, 1832).

Yeshua exhorted His own disciples to remember and learn from events they themselves had seen and experienced: “And Yeshua . . . said to them . . . ‘Do you not yet comprehend or understand? Do you still have your heart hardened? Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember?’” (Mark 8:17-19)

The Apostle Peter adds his ‘amen’ to the discussion: “I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of a reminder, to remember the words spoken beforehand by the holy prophets” (1 Peter 3:1-2).

What are we supposed to remember at this time?

“So that the name of Israel will be no longer remembered”

The prophetic Psalm 83 reflects ancient hatred, both against the God of Israel and the people of Jacob. There are clear genocidal goals of these nations, which include:

Edom [Palestinians and southern Jordan]

Ishmael [Saudi Arabia]

Moab [central Jordan]

the Hagrites [Arabs]

Gebal [Lebanon]

Ammon [also central Jordan]

Amalek (here they appear again!]

Philistia [includes the territory of Gaza]

Tyre [Lebanon]

Assyria [northern Iraq]

For behold: Your enemies make an uproar, and those who hate You have exalted themselves. They make shrewd plans against Your people and conspire together against Your treasured ones. They have said, “Come, and let’s wipe them out as a nation, so that the name of Israel will no longer be remembered.” For they have conspired together with one mind; they make a covenant against You: the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, Moab and the Hagrites; Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek, Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre; Assyria also has joined them. They have become a help to the children of Lot. Selah (Psalm 83:4-8)

People in the Middle East often have long memories; their history requires them to remember past hatreds and slaughters. And so it is in our day as well.

Remembering our shrewd enemies

The news cycle moves so quickly, often with coverage that does not give the reader tools to understand events. Here are three newsletters from the past years which give essential background, history and goals of Hamas, Qatar and Saudi Arabia:

The February 4, 2006 newsletter reveals the origins of Hamas; what they believe and their jihadi strategy in their own words; and how both Iran and Qatar are their main supporters: https://davidstent.org/hurtling-through-the-fog-of-war-a-messianic-perspective-on-the-new-hamastan/

The December 5, 2022 newsletter shines a spotlight on the darkness surrounding the Gulf state of Qatar – America’s supposed ‘ally’ while it remains the main bankroller of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas, the Taliban, Al-Jazeera TV [a propaganda front for Hamas], etc.: https://davidstent.org/strong-horses-and-lion-cubs/

The September 14, 2020 newsletter uncovering Saudi Arabia’s machinations to weaken and dismember Israel; American willingness to speed that process along, and the connection between that and the 9/11 Islamist jihadi terror attacks in America: https://davidstent.org/saudis-rose-gardens-and-genesis-123-an-update-on-9-11/

We encourage you to read these newsletters in order to get a crystal clear understanding of what the threats are, what they will develop into, and how we can pray about these matters.

The commission of the God of Jacob

YHVH addressed Moses (starting in Deuteronomy 10) and gave him and Israel a holy charge:

“Remember what Amalek did to you on the way when you came out of Egypt, how he confronted you on the way and attacked among you all the stragglers at your rear when you were tired and weary; and he did not fear God. So it shall come about, when YHVH your God has given you rest from all your surrounding enemies in the land which YHVH your God is giving you as an inheritance to possess, that you shall wipe out the mention of the name Amalek from under heaven; you must not forget” (Deuteronomy 25:17-19)

The God of Jacob takes the planning and violent deeds of Israel’s enemies very seriously. According to Genesis 12:3 these enemies are subject to the divine curse (see also Numbers 22:12; 23:7-8, 19-24), and their end will come at the hands of the army of Israel:

Behold, a people rises like a lioness and like a lion it raises itself. It will not lie down until it devours the prey (Numbers 23:24)

And I will inflict My vengeance on Edom by the hand of My people Israel. Therefore, they will act in Edom in accordance with My anger and My wrath. So, they will know My vengeance, declares the Lord YHVH (Ezekiel 25:14)

Today’s events

The total number of Israelis murdered by Hamas has increased as bodies are discovered and identified. It now stands at just under 1,350 babies, children, teenagers, women, men and pensioners. The total number of Israeli wounded in the ‘einsatzgruppen’ Nazi-like jihadi terror attacks stands at over 3,400.

A handful of Hamas terror squads were interdicted and eliminated near the Gaza Strip, within Israel proper. Hezbollah claimed responsibility for the firing of an anti-tank missile from Lebanon into Israel, killing an Israeli soldier, Staff Sgt. (res.) Matanya Elster, 22, of the 221st Battalion of the Carmeli Brigade.

A war government has been formed, bringing together Netanyahu’s coalition and Benny Gantz’s National Unity party. With three generals on board (present or former Chiefs of General Staff) on board, this move has found favor with the majority of Israelis as they prepare for the critical fast-approaching campaign – the ground invasion of Gaza and the total destruction of the jihadi terror group known as Hamas (as well as the second largest terror group in Gaza – Islamic Jihad).

How should we then pray?

Pray for the complete destruction of Islamist terrorist invaders either on Israeli soil or in all of Gaza
Pray for the physical rescue of the many Israelis (perhaps 165) who have been kidnapped
Pray for divine wisdom and decisive strategy to be given to Israel’s leaders in every area of planning
Pray that Lebanon’s leaders will be able to restrain Hezbollah from making moves which would be suicidal to that country
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s prophetic Jewish army throughout the earth

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

Breaking the jaws of the wicked

Over the past two days, Israel has been eliminating the remaining dregs of Hamas terrorists – the jihadi squads of over a thousand who crossed into Israel on the Sabbath to rape, murder, kidnap and torture. Going house to house and building to building, IDF soldiers have taken down or captured nearly a thousand terrorists. Israel’s army has also discovered bestial savagery of these jihadi ravagers, in the corpses discovered as the kibbutzim, moshavim, towns and fields have been combed.

In Kfar Aza, barely a few hundred meters from Gaza, the bodies of 40 slaughtered babies were discovered, many of them decapitated. Whole families were gunned down sleeping in their beds, or roughly hauled out to be executed while laughing terrorists filmed the events. A few kilometers from there, at a music festival, Hamas terrorists murdered 250 young people and went on to rape young women between the dead bodies of those slaughtered. Over 150 Israelis were brutally kidnapped to Gaza. Hamas has posted videos without any hesitation, showing mass rapes of young Israeli women, torture of children and decapitations of Israeli soldiers. Another photograph, verified by Israeli intelligence, shows many Israel babies and toddlers locked up in chicken pens which are stacked one on top of the other. These abominable acts are being applauded by those participating and witnessing in these videos. These images have gone viral in social media throughout the Arab world.

The heart of David

King David gives the anguished cry of our heart a biblical expression:

“Look at my enemies, for they are many, and they hate me with violent hatred” (Psalm 25:19)
“Do I not hate those who hate You, YHVH? And do I not loathe those who rise up against You? I hate them with the utmost hatred. They have become my enemies” (Psalm 139:21-22)

The wisdom of Solomon

David’s son Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, added his footnote here: “One who justifies the wicked and one who condemns the righteous – both of them alike are an abomination to YHVH” (Proverbs 17:15). Hamas supporters have been marching in New York, London, Paris, Berlin and Sydney, chanting “Kill the Jews! F*** the Jews!”

In the Bible YHVH speaks highly of Job: “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil” (Job 1:8). This God-fearing man addressed his prayer to God, asking Him to bring swift justice to such bestial people: “Look at everyone who is arrogant, and humble him, and trample down the wicked where they stand!” (Job 40:12; see also Job 29:17).

The decree of the God of Jacob

The majority of today’s Palestinians are descendants of Esau, also known as Edom. See my book ‘Jews, Arabs and the Middle East: a Messianic perspective’ for a detailed biblical and historical study of this (available at www.davidstent.org).

The prophets Obadiah and Ezekiel speak prophetic promises over Edom, the preeminent Last Days enemy of the Jewish people in the prophetic Scriptures:

“Will I not on that day, declares YHVH, eliminate wise men from Edom, and understanding from the mountain of Esau . . . so that everyone will be eliminated from the mountain of Esau by murder. Because of violence to your brother Jacob, shame will cover you, and you will be eliminated forever” (Obadiah 8-10)

The Lord YHVH says this: Because Edom has acted against the house of Judah by taking vengeance, and has incurred great guilt, and avenged themselves upon them, therefore this is what the Lord YHVH says: “I will also reach out with My hand against Edom and eliminate human and animal life from it. And I will turn it into ruins; from Teman even to Dedan they will fall by the sword. And I will inflict My vengeance on Edom by the hand of My people Israel. Therefore, they will act in Edom in accordance with My anger and My wrath. So they will know My vengeance,” declares the Lord YHVH (Ezekiel 25:12-14).

The God of Jacob directly and specifically commands Samuel what the Jewish people are to do with those enemies of Israel who seek her destruction: “Thus saith YHVH of armies, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt. Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not” (1 Samuel 15:2-3). Do we know this God?

King David gives us guidance on how to pray here: “Arise, YHVH; save me, my God! For You have struck all my enemies on the cheek. You have shattered the teeth of the wicked. Salvation belongs to YHVH! May Your blessing be upon Your people!” (Psalm 3:7-8).

Many followers of Messiah Yeshua are not deeply acquainted with the God of the Bible. They are comfortable with the image of a gentle Jesus, but appalled at the God of Moses, Joshua and Samuel. Isaiah’s vision of lion and lamb is ‘in,’ but YHVH coming to destroy Israel’s enemies is ‘out’ and make some believers distinctly ill at ease. But as the writer of the Epistle to the Messianic Jews (Hebrews) points out, “Messiah Yeshua is the same yesterday and today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). Are we willing to acknowledge and worship the One about whom Moses declared: “YHVH is a warrior – YHVH is His name . . . Your right hand, YHVH, is majestic in power! Your right hand, YHVH, destroys the enemies” (Exodus 15:3, 6).

When Messiah comes

Balaam prophesied by the Holy Spirit regarding one of the works that Messiah Son of David will perform at His return: “I shall see Him, but not now. I shall behold Him, but not nigh. There shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Scepter shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth” (Numbers 24:17). Moab is in central Jordan today, and Sheth is a parallel term for the people of Moab (Shutu) found in ancient Egyptian documents.

The principle behind these prophesies is crystallized in Zechariah’s Last Days declaration: “And this shall be the plague wherewith YHVH will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem” (Zechariah 14:12). Evidently the God of Jacob is still highly agitated about those who take up weapons against Israel.

“For YHVH of armies says this: ‘After glory He has sent Me against the nations that plunder you, for the one who touches you, touches the apple of His eye” (Zechariah 2:8). Would that more Christians today would grasp this huge emphasis straight from the heart and eyes of God.

Ezekiel speaks of one of the main motivators and catalysts that will move Messiah Yeshua to return to Jerusalem:

Now you, son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel and say, ‘O mountains of Israel, hear the word of YHVH. This is what the Lord YHVH says: “Since the enemy has spoken against you, ‘Aha!’ and, ‘The everlasting heights have become our possession,’ therefore prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Lord YHVH says: “For good reason they have made you desolate and harassed you from every side, so that you would become a possession of the rest of the nations; and you have been taken up in the talk and the rumor of the people.”’” Therefore, O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord YHVH. This is what the Lord YHVH says to the mountains and to the hills, to the ravines and to the valleys, to the desolate ruins and to the abandoned cities which have become plunder and an object of ridicule to the rest of the nations which are all around— therefore the Lord YHVH says this: “Certainly in the fire of My jealousy I have spoken against the rest of the nations, and against all Edom, who appropriated My land for themselves as a possession with wholehearted joy and with contempt of soul, in order to make its pastureland plunder.” Therefore, prophesy in regard to the land of Israel and say to the mountains and to the hills, to the ravines and to the valleys, “This is what the Lord God says: ‘Behold, I have spoken in My jealousy and in My wrath because you have endured the insults of the nations.’ Therefore, the Lord YHVH says this: ‘I have sworn that the nations that are around you will certainly endure their insults themselves’ (Ezekiel 36:1-7)

It is because of Hamas’ bestial barbarism (as well as that of Hezbollah, Syria, the Muslim Brotherhood, etc.) and its cancerous increase in days to come, that the return of the Captain of the armies of YHVH will be triggered.

Isaiah’s Jewish vision of Messiah’s Second Coming

One of the most powerful descriptions of Messiah’s return is found in Isaiah 56, and quoted by Paul as the capstone of Romans 11. The God of Isaac expresses astonishment that the nations of the world couldn’t care less about the plight of the Jewish people. He is also astounded that most intercessors are not interceding for Israel’s protection, victory and salvation. In anger He abruptly stands up from His throne, puts on His body armor, and heads out to crush those who are doing Israel harm:

Now YHVH saw, and it was displeasing in His sight that there was no justice. And He saw that there was no one, and was amazed that there was not one to intercede. Then His own arm brought salvation to Him, and His righteousness upheld Him. He put on righteousness like a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on His head. And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing and wrapped Himself with zeal as a cloak. According to their deeds, so will He repay: wrath to His adversaries, retribution to His enemies; to the coastlands He will deal retribution. So they will fear the name of YHVH from the west and His glory from the rising of the sun. For He will come like a rushing stream which the wind of YHVH drives. A Redeemer will come to Zion, and to those in Jacob who turn from wrongdoing, declares YHVH (Isaiah 59:15-20)

And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked (Isaiah 11:4)

These prophecies and the principles behind them are key to understanding why Satan hates the Jewish people so much, and why he is digging his own fiery grave by activating his demonized disciples to confront the living God and His armies. As David the shepherd teenager said, “For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he has dared to defy the armies of the living God?” (1 Samuel 7:16).

Mopping up and mowing the grass

The IDF is still finding and eliminating squads of Hamas terrorists. In the past few hours, as I was typing up this newsletter, news flashes explained how various jihadi groups were discovered and destroyed in Ashkelon, Sderot, Zikim Beach, and two kibbutzim. Only when that operation is successfully completed will the ground war against the jihadi terrorist rat’s nest in Gaza begin.

How should we then pray?

Pray for the complete destruction of Islamist terrorist invaders still on Israeli soil
Pray for the physical rescue of the many Israelis who have been kidnapped
Pray for divine wisdom and decisive strategy to be given to Israel’s leaders in every area here
Pray that Lebanon’s leaders will be able to restrain Hezbollah from making moves which would be suicidal to that country
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s prophetic Jewish army throughout the earth

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

Blind watchmen, mute dogs and prophets

The surprise invasion by Islamist jihadi group Hamas has so far resulted in over 700 Israelis murdered, over 2,000 wounded, and an unknown number of Israeli citizens kidnapped to the terror enclave of Gaza (this includes retirees, fathers and mothers, children and babies). This is a terror attack of proportions heretofore unknown in Israel; the casualties are more in line with full-scale war. Prime Minister Netanyahu has indeed labeled this a war and not simply a military operation.

One question that many in Israel are asking, is this: how could the most technologically advanced power in the Middle East, constantly under attack by its neighbors and well-defended with the latest in military alarms and protection systems, be overwhelmed and totally surprised by fairly low-tech forces? How could an IDF network of tripwire observation posts and CCTV monitors have been completely overwhelmed? Why were there glaringly insufficient boots on the ground, and why did it take an average of between five to twelve hours for IDF forces to show up (whether by land or by air) to rescue Jews held hostage by kidnappers and terrorists?

Some of the answers to these questions are known and they are technically based. Other answers will only be discovered by digging more deeply. The most telling answers come from consulting biblical principles and they are spiritual in nature. This newsletter considers these various factors.

Blinding eyes through subterfuge

The motto of Israel’s Mossad (Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations) is taken from Proverbs 24:6: “For by stratagems you will wage war, and victory comes from much planning.” Israel’s top-notch secret service has won grudging respect world-wide for its bold and inventive operations, one of the latest being the smuggling of much of Iran’s secret nuclear bomb archives out of downtown Tehran. Yet in this latest terror incursion by Hamas, it seems that the Islamist terror group also made use of strategic deception, and planning which made use of low technology.

The massive launching of rockets at 0630 hours on what was both a Shabbat and a Jewish holiday was also a strategic diversion. With the IDF focusing its attention on Iron Dome defense, it did not pick up the fact that Hamas simultaneously was launching an entire fleet of motorized ultra-light hang-gliders with no radar footprint, which manually dropped bombs on many of the Israeli lookout positions. As soon as the lookouts were blinded, Hamas terror squads raced to 20 pre-arranged points along the fence, where up to 1,000 jihadi terrorists were waiting. Pre-positioned bulldozers razed IDF fences, and many white pickup trucks loaded with Islamist terrorists sped into Israel to wreak murder and mayhem, destruction and kidnapping. The IDF had never had the experience of facing an invasion by many squads of Hamas operatives. Similarly, many groups of naval commandos broke into Israel by way of the sea near IDF’s Zikim base – a departure from Hamas’ usual tactics of sending over only one or two Zodiac boats.

Between 12 to 24 IDF battalions which normally would have been present in Gaza were serving in counter-terrorist operations (again from Hamas) in the West Bank. The IDF reserves framework has recently been weakened as a result of the boiling internal debates in Israel over the judicial overhaul, and the Israeli Police were similarly weakened due to being used to guard anti-overhaul demonstrators instead of more pressing security needs. The Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah also distracted Israelis over this past weekend – all in all, the ingredients for a perfect storm.

In a recent interrogation of a Hamas terrorist captured by Israel, he noted a few points: Hamas had planned this coordinated attack for over one year; the anti-government demonstrations in Israel (which divided, distracted and weakened the nation) were a great encouragement to them; they broke through into Israel and were free to murder and kidnap for 5 hours before the IDF responded to them; 1,000 Hamas terrorists participated in the operation; they made 15 holes in the security fence; the Hamas forces were astounded that IDF forces were not there at the fence to confront the jihadi forces.

Politically correct gatekeepers

In 2012 an Israeli film was released entitled ‘The Gatekeepers.’ Interviews with six former heads (‘gatekeepers’) of Israel’s security agencies Mossad and Shin Bet (GSS) discussed their history of combatting Islamist terrorism. Amazingly enough, nearly all of them exhibited a strange sympathy for the terrorists, a stunning example of what is known as the Stockholm Syndrome.

Swedish criminologist and psychologist Nils Bejerot coined that term to describe that puzzling phenomenon, where a hostage actually buys in to the oppressor’s or captor’s perspective, and then finds his own soul overwhelmed by his captors’ lies. The Stockholm Syndrome should be understood first and foremost as a survival mechanism for cornered victims. Typical behavior of those suffering from this syndrome includes focusing on the abuser’s positive side and denying his violence; seeing the abuser as only a victim; believing that one deserves the abuser’s violence; hating that part of ones’ self which the abuser said caused the attack.

The Stockholm Syndrome has specific significance for Israelis in the Middle East. Nearly a hundred years of Islamic Arab war, hostilities and terrorism have triggered Stockholm Syndrome attitudes within many Israeli hearts: we have begun to defend our enemies, to ignore their murderous goals and to blame ourselves for their hateful attacks. The world has encouraged our syndrome through slanted media and through political and economic pressure. As a result, many in Israel have bought into an attitude of accepting the necessity of retreat from portions of our ancestral homeland, of needing to shrink Israel’s borders in order to be accepted in the Middle East, of hiding behind anti-terror walls, and of “shutting ourselves in and hoping for the best” in the words of a March 23, 2006 article in The Economist. Two of the three main parties on Israel’s election rolls state that retreating from and surrendering our land to our mortal enemies offer us the best chance for peace.

Approximately one year ago Rachel and I went out to buy shawarma at a popular food stand in one of Jerusalem’s outlying suburbs. I immediately recognized a former head of Israel’s Shabak/GSS who came in to order take-out. For many years I had hoped that I would be afforded an opportunity to ask this man a few questions related to the ‘Gatekeepers’ film. I introduced myself to him, letting him know that I was familiar with both his security history and the film. One of the questions I asked him was this: is it possible that the General Security Services and the Mossad underestimated the spiritual dynamic of jihadi Islam, and could that underestimating have hampered the security services from being more effective in dealing with these people. He agreed that this was a possibility, and also that most of his fellow gatekeepers were now advocating for a Palestinian state. He did not want to talk more deeply about the subject.

The Gatekeepers interviewed in the film nearly to a man, believed that it is possible to work with the PLO and that a Palestinian state is something with which Israel can co-exist. They see the problems as solvable – if Israel makes it financially worthwhile and stays out of Gaza’s way. This was also Ariel Sharon’s perspective when he marched Israel out of Gaza in 2005 – and Hamas happily obliged to fill the gap.

One huge reason that these gatekeepers have been blinded is because of their secular worldview, which ignores or mocks the biblical reality of Satan and the demonic. For them, Islam is simply one of the three great monotheistic faiths, and the murderous anti-Jewish teachings of Islam’s source documents should be dismissed out of hand as ‘bad form.’ See my book ‘Jews, Arabs and the Middle East: a Messianic perspective’ for much more source background, available at www.davidstent.org.

The threats that jihad poses to Israel are all too real, yet they are being ignored by a secular Jewish country more in tune with McDonald’s than with Messiah Yeshua. The gatekeepers are no longer guarding the gates, and 1,000 jihadis just flooded in. These gatekeepers are not only in the security services; they are also Israeli politicians and diplomats, professors and oligarchs. Instead of warning Israel and preparing for the clash with international jihad, these gatekeepers have become ‘partners in peace’ with our mortal enemies. They have fallen asleep on the job.

Gatekeepers, watchmen and prophets

The Hebrew word for watchtower observer is tatzpetanit, related to the Hebrew root tsaphah. That word is the root used for ‘watchman’ or ‘tsopheh.’ YHVH’s commission to Ezekiel focuses on this word: “Son of man, I have appointed you as a watchman for the House of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from My mouth, warn them from Me” (Ezekiel 3:17). A watchman is someone who observes what the God of Jacob is saying, and then speaks it out in obedience in the right circumstance.

Hosea puts some meat on the bones here, explaining that a watchman speaks out for God; therefore, he is a prophet: “Ephraim was a watchman with my God, a prophet” (Hosea 9:8). To be a gatekeeping watchman is a prophetic calling.

The serious responsibility of being a watchman is laid out in Ezekiel chapter 33:2-6:

Son of man, speak to the sons of your people and say to them, “If I bring a sword upon a land, and the people of the land take one man from among them and make him their watchman, and he sees the sword coming upon the land and blows the horn and warns the people, then someone who hears the sound of the horn but does not take warning, and a sword comes and takes him away, his blood will be on his own head. He heard the sound of the horn but did not take warning; his blood will be on himself. But had he taken warning, he would have saved his life. But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the horn and the people are not warned, and a sword comes and takes a person from them, he is taken away for his wrongdoing; but I will require his blood from the watchman’s hand.”

In that light, Isaiah’s warning chills the blood: Israel’s watchmen, gatekeepers and prophets are sometimes asleep at the wheel, dumb dogs who have forgotten how to bark and to warn: “His watchmen are blind; all of them know nothing. All of them are mute dogs unable to bark – dreamers lying down, who love to slumber” (Isaiah 56:10-11).

Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, warns us all: “Unless YHVH builds a house, they who build it labor in vain. Unless YHVH guards a city, the watchman stays awake in vain” (Psalm 127:1). Israel’s leadership needs a spiritual visitation and revival. We are unprepared for the severe challenges facing us.

Mopping up, moving out, moving in

There are still pockets of deadly Hamas terrorist gangs roaming the Western Negev. The IDF is finding them one-by-one and two-by-two, and dispatching them. Today saw an organized evacuation of all Jewish kibbutzim and moshavim which border the Gaza Strip, as well as an evacuation of seven kibbutzim and towns bordering Lebanon in the north of Israel. As soon as these moves are completed, probably in less than 24 hours, the IDF’s entrance into the jihadi terrorist strongholds of Gaza will commence, probably preceded by the softening up of Hamas fortresses through artillery barrages, tank fire and pinpoint smart-bombs. Since Hamas strategically locates its rocket pads, command and control centers, and weapons depots in civilian areas, next to hospitals, tunneling under mosques and UN schools, one can be sure that world opinion (now sympathetic to Israel’s war aims) will swiftly pivot and turn against the Jewish state and her army.

How should we then pray?

Pray for the defeat and destruction of Islamist terrorist invaders on Israeli soil
Pray for the physical rescue of the many Israelis under siege, those who are kidnapped, and those who are wounded
Pray for divine wisdom and decisive strategy to be given to Israel’s leaders in every area required here
Pray that Lebanon’s leaders will be able to restrain Hezbollah from making moves which are suicidal to that country
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s prophetic Jewish army throughout the earth

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

Lest the sons of the Philistines rejoice

King Saul and his son Jonathan died defending the people of Israel on the mountains of Gilboa. Jonathan was killed in the battle, while Saul took his own life, falling on his sword. David son of Jesse, the soon-coming king, led the tribe of Judah in a public lament known as ‘the mourning song of the bow.’

Then David sang this song of mourning over Saul and his son Jonathan, and he told them to teach the sons of Judah the mourning song of the bow. Behold, it is written in the Book of Yashar: “Your beauty, Israel, is slaughtered on your high places! How the mighty have fallen! Tell it not in Gath; proclaim it not in the streets of Ashkelon, lest the Philistine daughters rejoice, and the daughters of the uncircumcised celebrate” (2 Samuel 1:17-20)

The surprise attack on the morning of October 7 by Islamist terrorists from Hamas and Islamic Jihad has brought forth its demonic fruit – the slaughter of at least 250 Israelis, the wounding of over a thousand Jewish people, and the kidnapping to Gazan underground tunnels and prisons of hundreds more citizens of the Jewish state. These crimes were met with rejoicing among the bestial mobs of Gaza. Golden-ager Jewish women were shot at point blank range by jihadi terror squads, as were their daughters and grandchildren. Bodies of young women and soldiers were dragged across public squares and stomped on by mobs screaming out ‘Allahu akbar’ – ‘Allah is greater.’ Teenaged girls were hauled by their hair past violent crowds, while candies and sweet pastries were distributed to the Gazan bystanders in celebration of this ‘uncircumcised victory.’

What has happened here? What is about to happen? How did these events catch the Israel Defense Forces seemingly by surprise? How can we pray into these matters?

“They make shrewd plans against Your people”

On Friday September 1 and Saturday September 2, 2023, two fateful meetings were held in Beirut. At the first meeting Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian met with Hamas deputy chief Saleh al-Arouri and Islamic Jihad Secretary-General Ziyad al-Nakhalah to discuss the upcoming October attacks on Israel. On the next day, they were joined by Lebanese Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah to work on “the importance of coordination between the resistance movements, especially in Palestine and Lebanon, on all political, security and military developments.”

The words of Asaph the psalmist carry enormous prophetic weight here:

God, do not remain quiet! Do not be silent and, God, do not be still! For behold, Your enemies make an uproar, and those who hate You have exalted themselves. They make shrewd plans against Your people, and conspire together against Your treasured ones. They have said, “Come, and let’s wipe them out as a nation, so that the name of Israel will no longer be remembered.” For they have conspired together with one mind; they make a covenant against You: the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, Moab and the Hagrites; Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek; Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre (Psalm 83:1-7)

The date chosen was fifty years plus one day after the outbreak of the Yom Kippur War, which happened on October 6, 1973. The symbolism here is also reflected in the attacks on the US diplomatic compound and CIA annex in Libya on September 11, 2012, the anniversary of al Qa’eda’s World Trade Center jihadi terror attack of September 11, 2001. In the Egyptian narrative, the Yom Kippur War is seen as an Arab victory against the Jewish state.

“They make shrewd plans against Your people”

In a sober parallel to how Israeli military intelligence was unprepared for the Yom Kippur war, so it seems that the Israel Defense Forces were painfully taken by surprise by the Hamas terror incursion into the sovereign State of Israel. The prophet Isaiah saw something similar in his own day: “His watchmen are blind! All of them know nothing. All of them are mute dogs unable to bark – dreamers lying down, who love to slumber” (Isaiah 56:10).

Intelligence failures do happen. Pearl Harbor, 9/11, Vietnam, Afghanistan (for British, Russian and American armies) – all indicate that such things are not foreign to military history. In 1973 Israel’s Defense Minister Moshe Dayan as well as some in AMAN (Military Intelligence Directorate) were guilty of hubris (hutzpah in Hebrew) in underestimating the enemy and in overestimating the IDF’s battle readiness. After the shooting stops in Israel and the smoke clears after this round, the commission looking into these blunders will have its work cut out for it.

How did the incursion happen?

Hamas unleashed a barrage of rockets aimed at civilian targets at 06:30 am, Saturday October 7, 2023. Kibbutzim, moshavim, towns, cities and military posts were attacked. Simultaneously, parachuting terrorists on ultra-light single-place powered vehicles glided onto Israeli territory next to kibbutzim (communal farms). Zodiac rubber boats crossed the short distance between Gaza and Israel, unloading heavily armed jihadis. Hamas engineers cut through the border fences, allowing at least ten pickup trucks armed with sub-machine gun and RPG-toting terrorists to break through and head to at least 21 different locations. Their goals: to murder Israeli men, women and children; to take hostages and spirit the captives back to Gaza or, in worse case scenarios, to engage in negotiations with the IDF for the release of Hamas terrorist jailed in Israel; to strike terror into the hearts of Israelis; and most probably to feint with a strategic diversion, drawing down IDF forces from the Lebanese border so that Hezbollah would have greater freedom of movement in attacking Israel.

All of these goals were successful.

Approximately 21 kibbutzim, moshavim, towns and cities were assaulted by Hamas terrorists. It took the IDF many hours to arrive, organize and counter-attack. Though in the end they have achieved some mastery of the areas involved, many civilians were murdered or kidnapped to Gaza in the meantime. Our personal friends had their home broken into while they hid. The Hamas terrorists staked out the living room and were there for some hours before IDF special forces broke in and freed our friends. Our friends’ son had some of his best friends captured and dragged off to Gaza in a jihadi kidnapping. Many others on that kibbutz were also kidnapped.

Over 250 Israelis have been murdered by the jihadis and over 1,100 have been wounded, many severely. Hundreds are presumed kidnapped. Hamas is presently firing rockets into civilian areas in the Greater Tel Aviv area, and they are firing those rockets from civilian neighborhoods in Gaza. This is a double war-crime.

Where do we go from here?

The IDF’s immediate military goals are twofold: to destroy any and all Hamas/Islamic Jihad rocket fire through the Israeli Iron Dome mobile air-defense system; to wipe out any Hamas terror squads that are still operating freely in Israel. One example is at Kibbutz Be’eri adjoining the Gaza Strip, where approximately 50 kibbutz members are being held hostage in the communal dining hall. There seem to be at least seven centers of terror activities, though there originally were 21 earlier this afternoon. A general call-up of reserves has been taking place this afternoon, and normal Israelis in all walks of life (including many Messianic Jews) have headed out to the front lines, preparing for a land incursion into the Gaza Strip.

When Prime Minister Ariel Sharon decided to withdraw all Israeli civilians and military from Gaza, he was applauded by many of the left of center – including by one or two well-known Israeli Messianic leaders. Gaza quickly fell to Hamas in the only free elections it ever had in 2006. The USA contributed USD $2.3 million through USAID to help, and former president Jimmy Carter’s Carter Center reported “a professional and impartial performance of election officials.” As soon as Hamas won the election, it proceeded to knee-cap, torture and murder Arafat’s PLO cadres. Within a short time Gaza became a jihadi terror base aimed at destroying Israel. Sharon’s legacy has blossomed into an ongoing terror campaign funded and overseen by the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The Gaza Strip is honeycombed with terror tunnels – far more than those faced by US forces in Vietnam. Hamas has hidden kidnap victims in these tunnels, which are heavily mined. Hamas’ high command HQ is situated under Shifa Hospital, raising ethical dilemmas for Israel’s warrior strategists. In order to ‘crush the head of the serpent,’ the battle must be prosecuted on land and underground as well. Hamas has spent much time preparing for these clashes, and will attempt to exact a high price in dead, wounded and kidnapped Israeli soldiers.

Hezbollah on the move

Israel’s doyen of military commentators Ehud Yaari has reported today that Hezbollah forces in Lebanon have raised their level of military preparedness to standby for their long-stated goal of invading Israel and unleashing their arsenal of 150,000 GPS-guided rockets. The UN UNIFIL observer forces have been moving into their comfortable military bases to get out of the way, as was once done in Sinai prior to the Six Day War on May 19, 1967. Time will soon tell, but it is highly likely that Hezbollah will enter the theater of combat in the very short future.

Israel has clearly warned Lebanon over the past decade that Hezbollah’s use of its rocket arsenal would force Israel “to return Lebanon back to the Stone Age . . . We will not hesitate to use all our power,” said Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

If this long-discussed battle breaks out, with Lebanon attacking Israel through tunnels, hang gliders, commando incursions and rockets, the Middle East may be facing one of the most intense periods of war that it has ever seen.

How should we then pray?

Pray for the defeat and destruction of Islamist terrorist invaders
Pray for the physical rescue of Israelis under siege, those who are kidnapped, those who are wounded
Pray for divine wisdom and decisive strategy to be given to Israel’s leaders in every area
Pray that Lebanon’s leaders will be able to restrain Hezbollah from making moves which are suicidal to that country
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s prophetic Jewish army throughout the earth

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

Hamas surprise attack

At approximately 06:30 am Israeli time, on a quiet Shabbat morning, we were awakened by the repeating wailing of air raid sirens. For the past four hours the Islamist terror group Hamas has been firing rockets across southern Israel (Beersheva, Arad, Dimona, Sderot, Ashkelon, Ashdod, etc.) and also at the Greater Tel Aviv area and at the outlying suburbs of Jerusalem.

Though the Iron Dome anti-rocket defenses have managed to stop most of the rockets, some of landed. A 60 year old woman was murdered by a direct hit; some are moderately wounded.

Simultaneously, at least ten white pickup trucks driven by Hamas suicide squad jihadis crossed into Israel (as well as some on ultra-light single-place powered parachutists) and attacked approximately 21 sites, including kibbutzim and moshavim (farms), small towns (including police stations). They have been slaughtering civilians, including mothers and children, breaking into houses and indiscriminately killing the inhabitants. We have friends who have terrorists in their house as I write.

At least five IDF soldiers have been kidnapped and spirited away to Gaza. A Hummer armored vehicle most likely belonging to them has been paraded in the streets of Gaza – shades of 2 Samuel 1:20: “Tell it not in Gath, Proclaim it not in the streets of Ashkelon, Or the daughters of the Philistines will rejoice, The daughters of the uncircumcised will celebrate.” There are sketchy details of at least 35 others kidnapped. Scores of IDF soldiers have been murdered. Over 80 casualties have been brought to Beersheva’s Soroka hospital, and other figures quote 150 wounded. The situation of the ground is quite fluid.

At the moment of this writing, there are still many active sites of military confrontation between terrorist gangs and Israeli citizens/the IDF – 21 sites was the figure Israel’s Chief of Police mentioned thirty minutes ago. Islamic Jihad has joined in the hostilities against Israel in the last hour.

Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif issued a false-flag declaration that these attacks are being done by Muslims outraged at Israel’s defiling of the Temple Mount. This false charge has been repeated many times since 1929, and has always led to Islamist attacks on Jewish civilians. See previous newsletters which give a historical overview here, here and here. A vudeo was posted of terrorist chiefs rejoicing and then giving thanks to Islam’s spiritual leader in prayer.

The probable spark for this conflict has little to do with the Temple Mount, and everything to do with Iran. Hamas and Islamic Jihad are Iranian client proxies. Iran is catalyzing terror attacks against Israeli civilians to threaten Israel, Saudi Arabia and the USA about the warming of military ties between the Saudis and Israel. This is a warning shot across the bows.

Israel has issued a broad call-up of reserves and has called this campaign Operations Iron Swords.

The broad nature of this surprise attack, the civilian and military casualties and kidnappings from Israeli cities and kibbutzim – these will of necessity require a very strong Israeli response. There have been deaths so far today, and there will undoubtedly be many more.

Please pray as the Psalmist did: “Arise, YHVH, confront him, make him bow down! Save my soul from the wicked with Your sword” (Psalm 17:13).

How should we then pray?

Pray for the defeat and destruction of Islamist terrorist invaders
Pray for the physical rescue of Israelis under siege, those who are kidnapped, those who are wounded
Pray for divine wisdom and decisive strategy to be given to Israel’s leaders in every area
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s prophetic Jewish army throughout the earth

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

When rivers flow from our kishkes

This weekend is the Hebrew calendar’s celebration of the seventh day of the Feast of Sukkot/Tabernacles, known as Hoshana Rabbah (‘the Great Hosanna’).

Now the Feast of the Jews – the Feast of Booths – was near . . . But when His brothers had gone up to the Feast, then He Himself also went up, not publicly, but as though in secret. So the Jewish people were looking for Him at the feast and saying, “Where is He?” . . . But when it was now the middle of the Feast, Yeshua went up into the Temple area, and began to teach. The Jewish people then were astonished, saying, “How has this man become learned, not having been educated?” . . . Now on the last day, the Great Day of the Feast, Yeshua stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. The one who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” But this He said in reference to the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive. For the Spirit was not yet given, because Yeshua was not yet glorified. Some of the people therefore, after they heard these words, were saying, “This truly is the Prophet.” Others were saying, “This is the Messiah” (John 7:2, 10-11, 14-15, 37-41)

A gut feeling

Kishke is a well-known Ashkenazi Yiddish food made from cow’s intestine stuffed with mincemeat, rice, vegetables and flour. The origin of the word is Slavic. In Polish it is kiszka; in Russian the word is кишка́ (kišká); in Ukrainian ки́шка (kýška). The ancient Slavic root is kyša, kyšьka, meaning ‘intestine’ or ‘stomach.’ It may even go back to the ancient Sanskrit synonym koṣṭha, and the Ancient Greek κύστις (kústis, “bladder”). In Yiddish kishke can be synonymous with ‘gut’ – as in, ‘I feel it in my kishkes.’ As a writer said in the Hamilton Jewish News, “Yiddish . . . lives on in our kishkes – our guts – should we choose to remember those who lived by them and spilled them.”

Frank John Yankovic (who passed in 1998) was an accordion player from Cleveland with Slovenian roots known as Grammy-award winning ‘America's Polka King.’ His 1963 cover of ‘Who stole the kishka?’ is still a popular polka tune.

The Yiddish expression ‘kishke-gelt’ refers to money earned by self-deprivation so extreme that it’s ‘ripped from the intestines.’

The Greek equivalent to ‘kishkes’ used in John 7:38 is Κοιλία (koilia), meaning the whole belly, the lower belly, the womb, or the innermost part of a man, the soul, heart: “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. The one who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being [i.e., his belly/kishkes] will flow rivers of living water’” (John 7:37-38).

The Feast of Tabernacles – a promise for every believer

The Apostle John takes pains to explain to us, his readers, that this Feast of Tabernacles promise is for ‘the one who believes in Me’ and for ‘anyone who is thirsty:’ “But this He said in reference to the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive. For the Spirit was not yet given, because Yeshua was not yet glorified.” A normal believer’s spiritual inheritance is to have rushing rivers of living waters flowing from his or her innermost being. That is Yeshua’s promise!

Paul echoes and amplifies this calling: “And do not get drunk with wine, in which there is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit!” (Ephesians 5:18). He contrasts two words ‘become drunk’ (methuskó) with ‘be filled up’ (pléroó). The overwhelming nature of the experience and its profound effect on our behavior and conduct are what Paul wants us to meditate on.

Sukkot/Tabernacles/Booths is a multifaceted Jewish holiday. It not only reminds us of two biblical principles:

“So that your generations may know that I had the sons of Israel live in booths when I brought them out from the land of Egypt. I am YHVH your God” (Leviticus 23:43)

“You shall celebrate the Feast of Booths for seven days when you have gathered in from your threshing floor and your wine vat. And you shall rejoice in your Feast, you, your son and your daughter, and your male and female slaves, and the Levite, the stranger, the orphan, and the widow who are in your towns. For seven days you shall celebrate a Feast to YHVH your God in the place which YHVH chooses, because YHVH your God will bless you in all your produce and in all the work of your hands, so that you will be altogether joyful” (Deuteronomy 16:13-15)

It also calls us to remember Messiah Yeshua’s promise – that if we thirst for God and believe in Him whom He has sent, we will experience Holy Spirit rivers of living waters flowing out of our kishkes! What an amazing promise to lay hold of!

May we as followers of Israel’s Messiah Yeshua reach out to the God of Israel and ask Him to fill us up in our innermost being; to reveal any obstacles or stumbling blocks which might impede His work; and to ask YHVH to keep tenderizing our hearts on a daily basis: “But encourage one another every day, as long as it is still called ‘today,’ so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin” (Hebrews 3:13).

How should we then pray?

Pray for us to receive revelation about Messiah Yeshua’s promise of these rivers of living waters
Pray for Messianic Jews and Gentiles everywhere to open our hearts without fear or unbelief to Holy Spirit
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s prophetic Jewish army throughout the earth

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

Riders of the Lost Ark – A Yom Kippur story – Part Two

This is the second of a two-part newsletter about Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.

I had an interesting childhood – attended Yiddish school, was involved with Yiddish theater and played in a Yiddish mandolin orchestra. Though at rare times I got suited up with my dad on the High Holidays and went to synagogue, my viewpoint was like that of my Yiddish-speaking communist parents: anyone who believed in God was both primitive and superstitious.

But I still knew that there was something different about Yom Kippur. Call it a nagging feeling, but I knew that many Jews felt that the Day of Atonement was the one Jewish holy day not to treat lightly. Jews who didn’t fast or try to feel repentant on that day might be cut off from the Jewish people forever. That’s what I understood Jewish tradition to say. For many of my friends, Yom Kippur was the only time they attended synagogue – ‘Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur Jews’ were like ‘Christmas and Easter Christians,’ it seemed to me.

As a child, my father backed up Yossele Rosenblatt, considered the finest cantor of his time, in a synagogue choir in Manhattan. I still have my father’s Yom Kippur prayer book which he worked from as a cantor in the U.S. Army during WWII – complete with penciled-in notes as to who would sing what. I remember how his voice sounded when he sang Yom Kippur cantorial melodies.

I knew that the high point, the most decisive spiritual climax of the synagogue service, was the Ne’ila – the locking of the doors of Heaven, I was told. These were the last possible seconds in the packed service where one’s personal repentance might actually accomplish something before the God of Jacob. The final blast of the shofar brought that drama to a close, and my father and I would slowly return home.

Only after I came to faith in Messiah Yeshua did I begin to sift through tradition and history, comparing them to what Moses and the Prophets taught. As a young Messianic Jew, I also tried to learn from older brothers and sisters in the Lord, but found that most of them knew even less than I did about these matters. This newsletter is a short summation of what I have learned since then, presented in five questions:

What went on in both the Tabernacle and the Temple on the Day of Atonement

What does the biblical term ‘to be cut off’ (associated with Yom Kippur) mean for us today

What rabbinic teachings shape most Jewish people’s understanding of the Day of Atonement

How can Messianic believers relate to Yom Kippur

What do the prophetic Scriptures say about Yom Kippur and the Jewish people’s destiny

A Day in the life

The Third Book of Moses (Vayyīqrāʾin Hebrew, Leuïtikón in Greek and Leviticus in English) describes the events of the Day of Atonement, step by step and hour by hour. Leviticus 16:1-34 presents the events from the perspective of what tasks the High Priest needed to accomplish, while Leviticus 23:26-32 addresses the common people of Israel and their commemoration of the Holy Day. Numbers 29:7-11 gives a complete list of the offerings and sacrifices (sin, burnt, grain, drink) commemorated on that day. Here are the five main stages of Yom Kippur:

The High Priest purifies himself and dons special linen garments
He cleanses the Tabernacle from impurities
He makes an atoning sacrifice for national sin
He sprinkles the atoning blood on the kapōret (the place of the atoning cover on the Ark of the Covenant)
He sends the scapegoat (the azazel) into the wilderness, a prophetic symbol of the total removal of Israel’s sin

The writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews [Messianic Jews] sums up this activity:

Therefore, even the first covenant was not inaugurated without blood. For when every commandment had been spoken by Moses to all the people according to the Torah, he took the blood of the calves and the goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, saying, “This is the blood of the covenant which God commanded you.” And in the same way he sprinkled both the tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry with the blood. And almost all things are cleansed with blood, according to the [Mosaic] Teaching, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (Hebrews 9:18-22)

The Book of Leviticus 16:29-34 stresses the following heart attitudes and practices:

humble yourselves and do no work
a Sabbath of solemn rest in order to humble yourselves
a permanent statute once every year

The Book of Leviticus 23:26-32 adds:

a holy convocation
humble yourselves and do no work (mentioned 2-3 times)
“Any person who does not humble himself shall be cut off from his people. As for any person who does any work on this very day, that person I will eliminate from among his people”
a Sabbath of complete rest

Israel’s sobriety of heart and self-humbling of spirit were part and parcel of the national sin offering event. Yom Kippur was not exactly a happy festival; its somber nature eventually was connected to fasting, although that specific word is not used by the Bible in all of the contexts.

Cutting it close

YHVH entrusted the act of male circumcision on the eighth day to Abraham in Genesis 17:14. Disobedience on this point entailed being cut off from the Abrahamic Covenant and from the Jewish people:

“And every male among you who is eight days old shall be circumcised throughout your generations . . . So My covenant shall be in your flesh as an everlasting covenant. But as for an uncircumcised male, one who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people. He has broken My covenant” (Genesis 17:12-14)

The Hebrew term karath used in Genesis 17 means to cut down, cut off or destroy. It has a secondary meaning ‘to cut’ or to make a covenant. When the term is used with the sense ‘to cut off,’ it can refer to one of three possible meanings. Context is important in the interpreting which one of the three is being stressed. It should also be understood that these definitions are probably the maximum limits which judges could mete out, and not woodenly required in each situation:

to be cut off eternally from God
to be excommunicated on earth by men or by God
to be physically put to death directly by man or through God’s sovereign outworking

The following are 14 examples of activities which result in ‘being cut off,’ according to the Mosaic Covenant:

Kidnapping and slavery Exodus 21:16
Being a false prophet Deuteronomy 13
Blasphemy Leviticus 24:16; 1 Kings 21:10
Idolatry Deuteronomy 13:6-10
Occult practices Leviticus 20:27
Adultery Deuteronomy 22:22
Adultery with an engaged woman Deuteronomy 22:23-24
Incest Leviticus 20:11-14
Homosexuality Leviticus 20:13
Bestiality Leviticus 20:15-16
Harlotry Deuteronomy 22:21
Premeditated murder Exodus 21:12
Violating the Shabbat Exodus 31:14-16; Numbers 15:32-36
Persistent/high-handed disobedience to God or to one's parents (b'yad rama)
Numbers 15:3-31; Leviticus 20:9; Deuteronomy 21:20-21; Exodus 20:12; Ephesians 6:2-3

Some of these judgments were capital offences, while other would involve exclusion from the community – either open-ended or limited in time (a ban). Numbers 27:14 refers to the rebellion at Kadesh, yet YHVH did not destroy Israel. Instead, His discipline entailed a national delay in entering the Promised Land – though most of that generation did die in the wilderness (Numbers 26:65). When the Mosaic Covenant allows no atoning sacrifice for sin, and yet God graciously does not cut our people off, there is room for humbly rejoicing:

See then the kindness and severity of God: to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if you continue in His kindness; for otherwise you too will be cut off. And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in; for God is able to graft them in again. For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and contrary to nature were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree? For I do not want you, brothers and sisters, to be uninformed of this mystery – so that you will not be wise in your own estimation – that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written: “The Deliverer will come from Zion. He will remove ungodliness from Jacob . . . This is My covenant with them, when I take away their sins.” In relation to the gospel they are enemies on your account, but in relation to God’s choice they are beloved on account of the fathers – for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable (Romans 11:22-29)

In 1 Corinthians 5:5 and 11:28-32 Paul points out how God can bring judgment on believers who highhandedly violate biblical commands. Though prosecutable evidence may escape human judges’ detection, God who sees everything may bring His justice about in His own time. The fear of the Lord is supposed to affect the community, so that all will know that YHVH will not tolerate hypocrisy and hidden sin in Israel’s public worship, praise and celebration (see Jude 1:12).

Messiah our Righteousness is cut off

There are two passages in the Scriptures which use the verb ‘cut off’ in connection with the Messiah: “Then after the sixty-two weeks, the Messiah will be cut off (yikaret) and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary” (Daniel 9:26). Isaiah adds a corresponding thought, using a similar Hebrew verb to karath (‘nigzar’): “By oppression and judgment He was taken away. And as for His generation, who considered that He was cut off from the land of the living for the wrongdoing of my people, to whom the blow was due?” (Isaiah 53:8). God’s redemptive decision to ‘cut off’ the Messiah is the highest point in the history of atonement!

But YHVH was pleased to crush Him, causing Him grief. If He renders Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, and the good pleasure of YHVH will prosper in His hand. (Isaiah 53:10)

Therefore, it was necessary for the copies of the things in the heavens to be cleansed with these things, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Messiah did not enter a holy place made by hands, a mere copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us; nor was it that He would offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the Holy Place year by year with blood that is not his own. Otherwise, He would have needed to suffer often since the foundation of the world. But now once at the consummation of the ages He has been revealed to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. And just as it is destined for people to die once, and after this comes judgment, so Messiah also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him. (Hebrews 9:23-28)

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and congregation of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Yeshua, the mediator of a New Covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel. (Hebrews 12:22-24)

But when Messiah appeared as a high priest of the good things having come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made by hands, that is, not of this creation; and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the Holy Place once for all time, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled, sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Messiah, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? (Hebrews 9:11-14)

The Tashlich tradition – future sprinkling, washing and cleansing

A Jewish tradition from the late medieval period is based on Micah 7:18-20, where YHVH promises to cast (tashlich) all Israel’s sins into the depths of the sea. The forgiveness of the sins of the sons and daughters of Jacob is an oft-repeated theme in the prophets. This cleansing comes about as a result of Yeshua’s atonement:

Psalm 51:2 washing and cleansing

Isaiah 44:22 wiping out sins

Micah 7:18-19 passing over the sin of remnant, casting it into the sea

Ezekiel 26:25 sprinkling clean water, cleansing

Jeremiah 33:8 cleansing and forgiving

Jeremiah 50:20 searching for Israel’s sins but they are not found

Zechariah 13:1 fountain of cleansing for House of David and inhabitants of Jerusalem

Ephesians 5:26 Messiah Yeshua cleanses us by the washing of water with the Word

But when Messiah appeared as a high priest of the good things having come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made by hands, that is, not of this creation; and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the Holy Place once for all time, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled, sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Messiah, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? (Hebrews 9:11-14)

They will not teach again, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know YHVH,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, declares YHVH, for I will forgive their wrongdoing, and their sin I will no longer remember (Jeremiah 31:34)

For I will take you from the nations, and gather you from all the lands; and I will bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and bring it about that you walk in My statutes, and are careful and follow My ordinances (Ezekiel 36:24-27)

Cherries Jubilee

YHVH commanded that, once every fifty years, a national forgiveness of debts should be proclaimed across Israel. All debts would be wiped off the books – a joyous event indeed! Yom Kippur was the occasion for huge celebration among the Jewish people – a physical manifestation of a glorious spiritual reality:

You shall then sound a shofar abroad on the tenth day of the seventh month. On the Day of Atonements you shall sound a shofar all through your land. So you shall consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim a release throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, and each of you shall return to his own property, and each of you shall return to his family (Leviticus 25:9-10)

“Behold, I am going to engrave an inscription on it, declares YHVH of armies, and I will remove the guilt of that land in one day” (Zechariah 3:9)

A rabbinic Yom Kippur

Modern Orthodox Jewish perspectives on the Ten Days of Awe and the Day of Atonement have historical roots. After the Second Temple was destroyed by Imperial Rome, hopes for its speedy rebuilding did not materialize. Rabbinic Judaism then ‘rebuilt itself,’ bringing in non-biblical ceremonies of atonement which were not based on sacrifices on Mount Moriah in Jerusalem. This required massive restructuring, and today’s Orthodox Judaism is that product – a step-child of Second Temple Judaism, one which has departed from the atonement-based foundations of Moses and Messiah Yeshua.

IN the 200’s A.D. Rabbi Judah the Prince (author of the Mishnah) brought forward a new and non-biblical concept regarding a staggered process: individual Jews are judged on the Feast of Trumpets but that judgment is only sealed on the Day of Atonement:

“Rabbi Judah says: All are judged on New Year and the separate dooms are sealed each in its time – on Passover in respect of produce, on Pentecost in respect of fruit, on Tabernacles judgment is passed in respect of rain, and man is judged on New Year and his doom is sealed on the Day of Atonement” (BabylonianTalmud [TB], Tractate Rosh Hashana 16a).

A few years after him, Rabbi Yochanan expanded on Rabbi Judah’s new teaching, adding embellishments of his own:

“Three books are opened (in heaven) on New Year, one for the thoroughly wicked, one for the thoroughly righteous, and one for the intermediate. The thoroughly righteous are forthwith inscribed definitively in the book of life. The thoroughly wicked are forthwith inscribed definitively in the book of death. The doom of the intermediate is suspended from New Year till the Day of Atonement. If they deserve well, they are inscribed in the book of life. If they do not deserve well, they are inscribed in the book of death” (TB, Tractate Rosh Hashana 16b).

This tradition has led to Rosh Hashana (the Feast of Trumpets) being described as Yom Ha-Din – the Day of Judgment.

Nearly one thousand years later, Rambam (Moshe ben Maimon or Maimonides) tried to explain the spiritual basis behind these not-biblically-based decisions. In his Mikra’ot Gedolot commentary on Leviticus, he stated:

“Now Scripture did not explain the reason for this commandment – why [we must do] the blowing [of the horn], and why we need a memorial before God on this day more than on all other days, and why He commanded altogether that this day should be a holy convocation. But because this day comes at the beginning of the month in which the Day of Atonement occurs, it would appear that on the New Year there is a judgment before Him, blessed be He, for by these He judges the peoples: on the New Year He sits upon the throne as the righteous Judge, and afterwards in the course of the next ten days He forgives the transgression of His servants.”

There we have it. Without biblical warrant, a whole new envelope was created and a whole new emphasis and understanding was given to these two biblical Holy Convocations. This transformed the biblical understanding and emphases of Yom Kippur into what is traditionally followed today. From changing the biblical New Year to Eitanim/Tishrei, to a legally legislated Ten Days of Awe, to proclaiming that each and every individual Jew’s destiny is written down one year at a time in the Book of Life – these less-than-biblical emphases are traditionally embraced by many Jewish people.

It’s not easy being a Messianic Jew

For the remnant of Israel, we Messianic Jewish men and women who follow Messiah Yeshua, there are many scattered rocks and remains of broken buildings on our spiritual path to restoring the Jewish people in our Land – both physically and spiritually. Occasionally and poetically speaking, there is unexploded ordnance and even an active mine or two. Do pray for our fledgling community as we stride forward, laboring for the restoration of Jacob’s seed to the God of Jacob and to David’s Greater Son!

How can Messianic believers relate to Yom Kippur? Here are some foundational points:

Clearly, we are under the New Covenant and our atonement is through Yeshua.

We are not looking for our names to be written once yearly in heavenly books, for as Messiah Yeshua said: “Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven” (Luke 10:20). “Now at that time Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time. And at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued” (Daniel 12:1)

If we choose to fast, it is in intercession for our people, that they would turn to Messiah Yeshua and receive His atonement – and not that our fasting would atone for our sins. These have already been atoned for by Yeshua. “But as for you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that your fasting will not be noticed by people but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you” (Matthew 6:17-18).

It seems that the Apostle Paul was used to fasting on Yom Kippur: “When considerable time had passed and the voyage was now dangerous, since even the Fast was already over . . . “ (Acts 27:9).

We who follow Messiah are called to confess our sins before God on a daily basis, and to experience our personal Yom Kippur each day, as the blood of Messiah Yeshua cleanses us from all sin:

This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Yeshua His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us (1 John 1:5-10).

How should we then pray?

Pray for Jewish people to receive visitations and revelation about Messiah Yeshua our Atonement during this season
Pray for Messianic Jews and Gentiles to receive deepened understanding about the biblical and Messianic significance of this Holy Convocation
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s prophetic Jewish army throughout the earth

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

Riders of the Lost Ark – A Yom Kippur story – Part One

This is the first of a two-part newsletter about Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.

The Scriptures tell us that the God of Jacob rides upon the highest heavens; He rides on the clouds of heaven and through the desert; He rides on the cherubim:

There is no one like the God of Yeshurun, who rides the heavens to your help, and the clouds in His majesty (Deuteronomy 33:26)

Sing to God, sing praises to His name! Exalt Him who rides through the deserts, whose name is YHVH, and be jubilant before Him . . . to Him who rides upon the highest heavens, which are from ancient times. Behold, He speaks with His voice, a mighty voice (Psalm 68:4, 33)

He rode on a cherub and flew. And He sped on the wings of the wind (Psalm 18:10; see Psalm 99:1)

YHVH of armies, God of Israel, who is enthroned above the cherubim – You are the God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You made heaven and earth (Isaiah 37:6; 2 Kings 19:15)

In Moses’ Tent of Meeting and Solomon’s Temple, YHVH’s manifest presence hovered or rode above the two cherubim (Psalm 80:1), those golden representations of angels (see Genesis 3:24) who stand before God’s presence at all times:

Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of YHVH filled the Tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the Tent of Meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of YHVH filled the tabernacle (Exodus 40:34-35)

Now when Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of YHVH filled the House. And the priests could not enter the House of YHVH because the glory of YHVH filled YHVH’s House. All the sons of Israel, seeing the fire come down and the glory of YHVH upon the House, bowed down on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshiped and gave praise to YHVH (2 Chronicles 7:1-3; 5:11-14)

Yet You are holy – You who are enthroned upon the praises of Israel (Psalm 22:3)

In the Holy of Holies, the God of Jacob would actually appear to Aaron (Exodus 30:10; Leviticus 16) and later to the High Priest (both descended through Levi), manifesting His glory above the gold-covered sacred chest known in Hebrew as the kapōret or place of atonement (translated into Greek as hilastērion – i.e., to appease or make favorable; and into Latin as propriatorium – i.e., a place of reconciling or atoning).

Then you shall put the kapōret on top of the Ark. And in the Ark, you shall put the testimony which I will give to you. There I will meet with you. And from above the kapōret, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony, I will speak to you about every commandment that I will give you for the sons of Israel (Exodus 25:21-22)

Now when Moses entered the tent of meeting to speak with Him, he heard the Voice speaking to him from above the kapōret that was on the ark of the testimony, from between the two cherubim. So He spoke to him (Numbers 7:89)

What’s an atonement?

The Holy Convocation which is commonly called ‘the Day of Atonement’ is actually plural in the Hebrew of Leviticus 23:27 – Yom Hakippurim (Day of Atonements). The Hebrew root has commonly been connected to an Arabic cognate meaning ‘to cover’ or ‘to conceal.’ But a study of how the root ‘kaphar/kapar’ is used in the Hebrew Scriptures (150 times!) reveals that the biblical meaning is more accurately ‘ransom.’ A secondary meaning is ‘a bribe’ or something that will purchase favor in a challenging situation, In Leviticus the root kaphar is used 49 times with the concept of ransom-atonement. Here are some examples through the Hebrew Bible:

Then he commanded also the second and the third, and all those who followed the flocks, saying, “In this way you shall speak to Esau when you find him; and you shall say, ‘Behold, your servant Jacob also is behind us.’” For he said, “I will appease [kaphar] him with the gift that goes ahead of me. Then afterward I will see his face. Perhaps he will accept me.” So the gift passed on ahead of him, while he himself spent that night in the camp (Genesis 32:19-21)

If a ransom [kopher] is demanded of him, then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is demanded of him (Exodus 21:30)

“When you take a census of the sons of Israel to count them, then each one of them shall give a ransom [kopher] for himself to YHVH, when you count them, so that there will be no plague among them when you count them” (Exodus 30:12)

Moreover, you shall not accept a ransom [kopher] for the life of a murderer who is condemned to death, but he must be put to death. And you shall not accept a ransom [kopher] for one who has fled to his city of refuge, so that he may return to live in the land before the death of the priest (Numbers 35:31-32)

Here I am; testify against me before YHVH and His anointed! Whose ox have I taken, or whose donkey have I taken, or whom have I exploited? Whom have I oppressed, or from whose hand have I taken a bribe [kopher] to close my eyes with it? I will return it to you” (1 Samuel 12:3)

The fury of a king is like messengers of death, but a wise person will appease [root is kaphar] it (Proverbs 16:4)

“For I am YHVH your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I have given Egypt as your ransom (kopher), Cush and Seba in exchange for you” (Isaiah 43:3)

The exchange of life principle

Dr. Louis Goldberg (former Professor of Jewish Studies at Moody Bible Institute) – a dear friend now with the Lord – loved to stress that the heart of the sacrificial system in the Mosaic Covenant was something he called ‘the exchange-of-life principle.’ When the High Priest would lay his hands on the live sacrificial animal, the sins of the guilty sacrificer would (as it were) go into the innocent animal, and the life of the innocent animal would be accredited to the one who was laying his hands on the sheep or goat – thus granting him atonement:

And he shall lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering, so that it may be accepted for him to make atonement [root is kaphar] on his behalf (Leviticus 1:4)

Then Aaron shall lay both of his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the wrongdoings of the sons of Israel and all their unlawful acts regarding all their sins. And he shall place them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who stands ready (Leviticus 16:21)

He made Him who knew no sin to be sin in our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21, where Messiah Yeshua is described as our Atonement)

Blood, body and soul

God’s perspective is that blood is what ties body and soul together. It symbolizes life. Indeed, without it there is no life:

“For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls. For it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement . . . For as for the life of all flesh, its blood is identified with its life. Therefore, I said to the sons of Israel, ‘You are not to eat the blood of any flesh, for the life of all flesh is its blood; whoever eats it shall be cut off’” (Leviticus 17:11, 14)

Blood has one purpose in the Scriptures. It is to be used to honor God who has given us the gift of life. Blood is not to be eaten, but to be used to atone for human sins. To eat blood is a serious spiritual offense, for YHVH says that the blood and the fat of the sacrifice – the most significant part which represents precious life – belong only to the God of Jacob, and to no other deity or creation (see also Exodus 13:2; Leviticus 17; 27:9, 26). To take what God claims as His alone and to eat it for ones’ self, this is to rob and plunder the Lord Himself.

“And you are not to eat any blood, either of bird or animal, in any of your dwellings. Any person who eats any blood, that person shall also be cut off from his people” (Leviticus 7:26-27)

The Apostle Paul adds a New Covenant perspective here:

No, but I say that things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God. And I do not want you to become partners with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? We are not stronger than He, are we? . . . Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy way, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. (1 Corinthians 10:20-22, 27)

These concepts form the background for Yom Ha-kippurim, the Day of Atonements.

Our next newsletter will:

help unpack the actual events of this Holy Day in both Tabernacle and Temple

examine the meaning and relevance of the term ‘to be cut off’ which is associated with the Day of Atonements

consider the rabbinic teachings which today tend to shape and dominate most Jewish people’s understanding of this Day

will reflect on the future prophetic parallels connecting Yom Kippur and the Jewish people’s destiny

How should we then pray?

Pray for Jewish people to receive visitations and revelation about Messiah Yeshua our Atonement during this season

Pray for Messianic Jews and Gentiles to receive deepened understanding about the biblical and Messianic significance of this Holy Convocation

Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s prophetic Jewish army throughout the earth

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

The goat without a beard

The Yiddish language is rich in humor and irony. Though much of ‘the world of our fathers’ has disappeared in Holocaust flames, some of its wit and wisdom is preserved in sharp proverbs which still bring enjoyment and recognition.

“Oyb di bobeh volt gehat a bord, volt zi geven a zeydeh” (If grandma had a beard, she would actually be a grandpa).

My grandfather Shmuel would say: “A goat may have a beard, but that doesn’t make him a rabbi!”

In my fifty years of walking as a believer in Messiah Yeshua, I have run into occasional declarations by some Christian leaders advocating some wacky and unbalanced things, which are defined by them as being truly Jewish or Hebrew in nature. Few of these people actually speak Hebrew or have studied Jewish and rabbinic history. Yet their declarations imply that they have access to hidden spiritual understandings of secret Jewish ways. Representatives from both the Messianic Jewish and the Christian world would be included on the short list here. Another Yiddish proverb springs to mind: “A specialist is someone fifty kilometers away from home.”

Some dear friends have been exposed to such unfounded teachings. The Apostle Paul calls these declarations words which have “the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion” (see Colossians 2:23). Regrettably, we are seeing an upsurge of such things in our day. The goal of this newsletter is to shine discernment’s light of on some of these misguided teachings, and to encourage the embrace of biblical perspectives.

“Now these people were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so” (Acts 17:11)

“Do not quench the Spirit, do not utterly reject prophecies, but examine everything; hold firmly to that which is good” ( 1 Thessalonians 5:19-21)

It has become fashionable among some Christians who love Jewish roots and ways of expression, to unquestioningly accept rabbinic perspectives and practices in some areas. Two flashing red lights are of concern here: (a) the use of the rabbinic calendar, and (b) the use of gematria – numerological calculations influenced by kabbalah (Jewish black magic).

Reeling in the years

Every year, during the seventh biblical month of the year (called Eitanim in 1 Kings 8:2, but inaccurately called Rosh Hashana or the ‘Jewish New Year’ by rabbinic Judaism), a significant stream of Christian social media is abuzz with Jewish perspectives and traditions which are non-biblical and occasionally occultic. Among some groups there is a strong focus on the rabbinic use of letters of the Hebrew alphabet which are supposed to represent the year when the world was created – at least, according to rabbinic Judaism’s calculations. This year the rabbinic number under discussion is 5784 Anno Mundi – the counting from ‘the years of the earth/Creation’ (minyan la-yetzirah in Hebrew). What is the origin of this tradition?

Today’s rabbinic computation of ‘the years of Creation’ is not laid out in the biblical text. The first instance of this appears in the medieval period (800’s A.D.), based on a Hebrew scroll called Seder Olam Rabbah. That scroll was probably authored in the post-Hadrianic period by the Tanna Rabbi Yose ben Ḥalafta circa 165 A.D., a rabbinic scholar mentioned in the Babylonian Talmud (Shabbat 88a, Yevamot 82b). Some of his conjectures (though he does not clearly define the date of Creation in his description of Genesis) appeared in a reworked framework (circa 800’s A.D.) in a scroll called Baraita di-Shemu’el. In the late 800’s A.D. Jewish tombstones in Venosa (southern Italy) are found mentioning a similar dating system to Seder Olam Rabbah. About 946 A.D. Shabbetai Donnolo mentions such dating in his commentary on the Sefer Yezirah. In 1514 Seder Olam Rabbah was published in Mantua, and in 1517 it was published in Paris. In 1658, Archbishop of Armagh James Ussher’s Chronology was published, with conclusions based on Seder Olam Rabbah’s approach.

An interesting historical note: the usual calendar calculation used by Jews in Talmudic and post-Talmudic times was not rabbinic, but that of the Greek Seleucid era (post-Alexander the Great, with the starting point beginning in the year 312 B.C.) That axial date was referred to by Jewish sources as minyan hashtarot (‘the dating of documents’). Only after the center of Jewish life moved from Babylonia to Europe (in the middle Medieval period) was the Greek method of counting replaced by the Anno Mundi reckoning related to Seder Olam Rabbah.

When He walked the hills of Galilee, Messiah Yeshua did not tell time based on a rabbinic calendar, nor did the Apostles after Him.

Though we may admire rabbinic zeal in their desire to search out the exact year of Creation, the accuracy and precision of their conclusions cannot be endorsed by those who depend on Scriptural teaching. In the same way, prophetic words lose much of their reliability when they are based on unfounded rabbinic speculations.

The year of Creation is simply not given to us in the Bible. The occult use of Hebrew letters and the importing of arcane rabbinic reasoning – these are unable to pave a road which the Bible in any case never laid down for us to walk on. We exhort those who are spreading these ‘teachings’ among believers in Yeshua to pull back from seeding such falsehoods in the body of Messiah.

As in the days of Jeroboam, it is essential to make this point clear: the rabbinic dating system regarding the date of Creation is not God-breathed, nor is it accurate. When believers blindly use this rabbinic dating, an unwittingly spiritual dependence on rabbinic authority is set in motion – and that rabbinic authority denies Yeshua’s deity and Messiahship, the authority of the New Covenant, etc. Caveat emptor!

Fudging God’s commission can equal witchcraft

“No reason to get excited,” the thief he kindly spoke.

“There are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke.

But you and I, we’ve been through that and this is not our fate.

So let us not talk falsely, now – the hour is getting late.”

“Pride cometh before a fall, and a haughty spirit before stumbling” (Proverbs 16:18). King Saul of Benjamin’s tribe was more interested in public opinion polls than in being a godly and obedient leader in Israel. He masked his disobedience to the prophet Samuel’s direct order by conducting a religious ceremony – a sacrifice – in defiance of YHVH’s commands (1 Samuel 13:8-14; 15:1-21). In our day, we might not grasp the severity of disobeying a clear command of God. But perhaps thinking about this situation from a military point of view might help. What happens when a soldier disobeys the command of his superior officer? That is considered a very serious offense. In God’s kingdom when a king disobeys the express command of God, there is a stricter judgment – even if that king is Jewish.

Samuel’s pronouncement applies not only to King Saul, but also to any religious authority in Israel who rejects the Messiah and His message, and who then establishes for himself a religious framework born out of rebellion and rejection.

“Has YHVH as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of YHVH? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of YHVH, He has also rejected you from being king” (1 Samuel 15:22-23).

God’s choice of the word ‘witchcraft’ to classify Saul’s behavior was not accidental. Rebellious religious activity and sacrifice that do not accept God’s sovereignty and lordship, even if they are performed ‘from the heart’ – these are actually a spiritual façade disguising witchcraft. Orthodox Judaism’s spiritual roots are anchored in a rabbinic leadership that unfortunately rejected Yeshua’s Davidic authority, His Messiahship and His atonement.

Pride and witchcraft versus servanthood

One of the central activities of rabbinic Judaism is based around the study-hall (Beis Medrish in Yiddish, Beit Midrash or yeshiva in Hebrew). Intellectual acumen, prodigious memorization and blistering academic speed are treasured in that environment. Learning how to control vast amounts of halakhic information is a young man’s challenge in these institutions, while competitive pride in one’s own achievements can be a professional blowback of this educational method.

Unfortunately, there are a few Messianic leaders who make use of the same yeshiva dynamics – strong hierarchical control and appeal to pride – in overseeing believers committed to their care, all the time insisting that these manipulative methods are actually proof of apostolic authority. Yeshua invites us to follow a different way, a more excellent way – the way of servanthood and self-sacrificing love.

Hearing this, the ten began to feel indignant with James and John. Calling them to Himself, Yeshua said to them, “You know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them; and their great men exercise authority over them. But it is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant; and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:41-45)

Playing the numbers

There are things which may definitely be Jewish, but they are also definitely non-kosher.

A mystical strand of Judaism which purports to come from Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai (a 2^nd century rabbi) blends gnostic and Hindu magical practices, and then clothes them with ultra-Orthodox garb. Claiming that these teachings represent the hidden spiritual core of the Torah, these spiritual adulterers insist that these ‘spiritual secrets’ have been handed down from generation to generation as a valid and kosher ‘received tradition’ or kabbalah (from the Hebrew root KBL ‘to receive’).

To put it plainly in Christian evangelical terminology, kabbalah is Jewish occult, Jewish black magic. It bases itself on spiritual exercises aimed at manipulating spiritual powers, and propagates its false teaching with its own ‘map of the spirit world’ based on a gnostic interpretation of an allegorical ‘tree of life.’ It offers spiritual power and revelation to its followers – but it is stolen and treif.

The Jewish community’s response to kabbalah has been varied. Some traditional Jews see kabbalah and Chasidism as pagan and superstitious perversions of Judaism. Other Jewish communities believe that kabbalistic wonder-working rabbis are holy men. There are even some Messianic Jews (and Gentiles) who dabble in kabbalah and attempt to disseminate these teachings to audiences who lack the ability to sift and discern what it is that they are being spoon-fed.

Kabbalah was snapped up by some Christian Hebraists over the past hundreds of years, who mistakenly thought that they had found secret Jewish mystical texts proving the Trinity. Some even came to the unreal conclusion that kabbalistic rabbis secretly believed that Yeshua is the Messiah.

Playing the numbers

A Jewish tradition tied to kabbalah – to Jewish black magic – is called gematria. According to this teaching, every Hebrew letter in each Hebrew word has a mathematical equivalent. Like the ancient Romans who used their alphabet letters to represent numbers (C equal 100, L equals 50, etc.), so Hebrew letters can be used to equal mathematical sums. This method becomes occult when it moves away from simple mathematics and starts:

doing fortune-telling by looking for hidden prophetic meanings in the total mathematical equivalent of a word

compares the numerical total of a word to another word with the same mathematical total, and draws ‘prophetic’ meaning from the equivalencies

takes individual letters of the Hebrew calendar rabbinic reckoning, and gives allegorical or quasi-prophetic meaning to each letter

A recent example, seen across social media, involves this rabbinic year – called TaSH’PaD (5784 A.M.). A Christian kabbalistic/gematria interpretation floating around on social media takes the Hebrew letter for ‘D’ (‘dalet’) and proclaims that the ‘D’ stands for ‘delet’ or ‘door.’ Then a pseudo-prophetic word is brought declaring that this is ‘the Year of the Door.’ To be tongue in cheek, one could take the ‘SH’ (the Hebrew letter ‘shin’) and proclaim that the ‘SH’ stands for ‘sha’ar’ which means ‘gate.’ One could then declare that this is ‘The Year of the Gate.’ Or one could take the Hebrew letter for ‘P’ (‘peh’) and proclaim that the ‘P’ stands for ‘paz’ or fine gold. One could then declare that this is ‘the Year of Fine Gold.’ The possibilities are endless. But the results are neither biblical nor kosher nor prophetic.

Instead of consulting ‘the fortune-teller woman’ at the county fair, it has become ‘chic’ in some circles to consult ‘cutting-edge prophets and apostles’ who proclaim hidden Hebrew meanings for the coming rabbinic calendar year. This mystical and occult hermeneutical technique removes logic and biblical discernment from the interpretative process. Instead, a squirrely hermeneutic is substituted, which pridefully appeals to a seemingly superior Hebrew knowledge. But this method is dead in the water, lacking both biblical basis and kosher qualifications.

These dabblings into Jewish mysticism are at times trumpeted by some Gentile believers who lack sufficient ability and discernment in these matters. Unfortunately, even some Messianic Jews are getting on the same rickety bandwagon. These above-mentioned rabbinic influences can exert an unhealthy pull on believers who may have started off positively inclined toward Jewish subjects. These abuses have a real potential to confuse and fog believers’ spiritual discernment, and to open up doors of deception in the name of ‘Jewish roots.’ It is our heart’s prayer that all dear believers stay far away from these non-kosher aspects of rabbinic theology, tradition and mysticism. They are not only spiritually unclean. They also come from a worldview that denies the reality and power of Israel’s Risen Messiah.

For greater detail on this subject, feel free to consult chapter nine of my book (‘Kosher and non-kosher Judaism’) titled ‘How to be Messianic without becoming Meshuggeh (*crazy): A common sense approach to kosher Messianic foundations’ which delves into these issues more deeply.

How should we then pray?

Pray for believers who appreciate the Jewish roots of our faith to cleave to the Scriptures as our foundational authority

Pray for believers to treat rabbinic authority with healthy caution, and to not grant it spiritual influence over our faith

Pray for Messiah Yeshua to be revealed to and accepted by many hungry Jewish hearts

Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s prophetic Jewish army throughout the earth

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

Why the shofar? Why the trumpet?

The gnarled and curved ram’s horn – the shofar – is universally recognized as the musical instrument par excellence associated with the Jewish High Holidays. It may come as a surprise that YHVH’s commands regarding the events of Yom Hakippurim (Yom Kippur/ the Day of Atonements) to Moses in Leviticus 23:26-32 and Numbers 29:7-11 do not mention a shofar or a silver trumpet. Why the connection, then? What do the Scriptures tell us about the symbolism of the shofar and the trumpet, and how do these meanings connect to these two Holy Festivals?

YHVH is a man of war (Exodus 15:3)

The first use of the word ‘shofar’ or ram’s horn in the Bible is found in the Book of Job, the earliest scroll written down by the ancients. In the context of fierce combat, the war horse is described as charging forward when he hears the voice of the shofar, the smell of the battle, the thundering shouting of the military officers and the teru’ah (war cries/shofar sounds).

“Do you give the horse his might? Do you clothe his neck with a mane? Do you make him leap like locusts? His majestic snorting is frightening. He paws in the valley, and rejoices in his strength. He goes out to meet the battle. He laughs at fear and is not dismayed, and he does not turn back from the sword. The quiver rattles against him. The flashing spear and javelin. He races over the ground with a roar and fury, and he does not stand still when he hears the sound of the shofar. As often as the shofar sounds he says, ‘Aha!’ And he senses the battle from afar, and the thunder of the captains and the war cry” (Job 39:19-25)

In Psalm 47 the Sons of Korah, a Levitical guild of worshippers (see 2 Chronicles 20:19), worship the God of Jacob who triumphs over Israel’s enemies in battle, accompanied by the sound of the shofar:

For YHVH Most High is to be feared, a great King over all the earth. He subdues peoples under us and nations under our feet. He chooses our inheritance for us, the pride of Jacob whom He loves. Selah! God has ascended with a shout – YHVH, with the sound of the shofar (Psalm 47:2-5).

The epitome of the shofar’s use in battle is of course Joshua at the Battle of Jericho:

“So the people shouted, and priests blew the shofarot. And when the people heard the sound of the shofar, the people shouted with a great shout (teru’ah gedolah) and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight ahead. And they took the city” (Joshua 6:20)

The joyful sound of shofar worship

King David incorporated the victory sound of the shofar and the military sound of the silver trumpet into his worship orchestra which led the Ark of the Covenant in public parade to the House of YHVH:

And David assembled all Israel at Jerusalem to bring up the Ark of YHVH to its place which he had prepared for it . . . Then David spoke to the chiefs of the Levites to appoint their relatives as the singers, with musical instruments, harps, lyres, and cymbals, playing to raise sounds of joy . . . Thus all Israel brought up the Ark of the Covenant of YHVH with shouting, and with sound of the shofar, with [silver] trumpets, with loud-sounding cymbals, with harps and lyres” (1 Chronicles 15:3, 16, 28)

An anonymous psalm declares the centrality of the shofar blast in high praise: “Sing praise-songs to YHVH with the lyre – with the lyre and the sound of praise-songs. With [silver] trumpets and the voice of the shofar shout joyfully before the King, YHVH” (Psalm 98:5-6).

The zenith of the Book of Psalms concludes with the shofar used in high praise: “Praise Him with the sounding of the shofar” (Psalm 150:3)!

The great rejoicing that Israel entered into at the New Moon celebrations, at the Feast of Trumpets and on the first day of the Feast of Sukkot/Tabernacles, is described in all its glory by Asaph in Psalm 81: “Blow the shofar at the New Moon [see Leviticus 23:23-24], at the full moon [the 15^th day of the Hebrew month – see Leviticus 23:33-35], on our feast day. For it is a statute for Israel, an ordinance of the God of Jacob” (Psalm 81:3-4).

The sound of the shofar was associated with joy and as a reminder to the God of Jacob to remember His prophetic promises and protection over His people Israel: “Also on the day of your joy and at your appointed feasts, and on the first days of your months, you shall blow your [silver] trumpets . . . and they shall be as a reminder of you before your God. I am YHVH your God” (Numbers 10:10).

Every Jewish man and woman, boy and girl instantly knew that the prophetic blast of the shofar called them to high praises, to shouts of victory and to war.

The coming of the terrible Day of YHVH

The God of Jacob is soon coming to judge the earth and to vanquish Israel’s enemies. The Hebrew prophets called that day ‘The Day of the Lord.’ That Day will be announced by the blowing of a shofar: “Blow a shofar in Zion, and sound an alarm on My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the Day of YHVH is coming. Surely it is near” (Joel 2:1).

The prophets describe that, on that day of judgment YHVH Himself will blow His divine shofar of victory in battle as He uses the mighty army of Israel to accomplish His awesome task (see also Ezekiel 37:10; 25:14):

“For I will bend Judah as My bow! I will fill the bow with Ephraim, and I will stir up your sons, Zion, against your sons, Greece. And I will make you like a warrior’s sword. Then YHVH will appear over them, and His arrow will go forth like lightning. And the Lord YHVH will blow the trumpet, and march in the storm winds of the south” (Zechariah 9:13-14).

Many great Last Days events will be heralded by a shofar

The prophetic End of the Jewish Exile will be accompanied by a shofar blast: “It will come about also in that day that a great shofar will be sounded. And those who were perishing in the Land of Ashur and who were scattered in the Land of Egypt will come and worship YHVH in the holy mountain at Jerusalem” (Isaiah 27:13).

Messiah Yeshua will send out angels with a great shofar to gather together Israel’s scattered flock from across the face of the whole planet: “And He will send forth His angels with a great shofar and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other” (Matthew 24:31).

The resurrection of the dead will be accompanied by the sound of the shofar: “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:52; the Greek equivalent word for shofar/trumpet used here is σάλπιγξ - salpigx).

The return of Messiah Yeshua to Israel will be signaled by a shofar blast – “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Messiah will rise first” (1 Thessalonians 4:16).

The appearance of YHVH to the people of Israel

When the God of Jacob appeared to the Jewish people to reveal His Mosaic covenant, His fear-inspiring voice sounded like a shofar:

So it came about on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and lightning flashes and a thick cloud upon the mountain and a very loud shofar sound, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because YHVH descended upon it in fire. And its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace and the whole mountain quaked violently. When the sound of the shofar grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and God answered him with thunder. YHVH came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain, and YHVH called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up. Then YHVH spoke to Moses, ‘Go down, warn the people, so that they do not break through to YHVH to gaze, and many of them perish’” (Exodus 19:16-21)

The writer of the Book of Hebrews (Messianic Jews) draws a powerful lesson for us, drawn from Moses’ Messianic prophecy in Deuteronomy 18:

“For you have not come to a mountain that can be touched and to a blazing fire, and to darkness and gloom and whirlwind, and to the blast of a trumpet and the sound of words, which sound was such that those who heard begged that no further word be spoken to them . . . But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and gathering of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Yeshua, the Mediator of a New Covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel. See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns us from heaven” (Hebrews 12:18-19, 22-25)

YHVH your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen; to him you shall listen. This is in accordance with everything that you asked of YHVH your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, saying, “Do not let me hear the voice of YHVH my God again, and do not let me see this great fire anymore, or I will die!: And YHVH said to me, “They have spoken well. I will raise up for them a prophet from among their countrymen like you, and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them everything that I command him” (Deuteronomy 18:15-18)

The shofar of Jubilee

The Bible mentions blowing a shofar on Yom Kippur in only one verse – as part of a discussion about the Year of Jubilee (a joyous occasion) when once every fifty years each individual Israeli gets all his debts forgiven and wiped off the books:

“And you shall sound the blast of a shofar on the tenth of the month of the seventh month. On the Day of Atonements you shall sound a shofar throughout all your land. You shall thus consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim a release through the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, and each of you shall return to his own property, and each of you shall return to his family” (Leviticus 25:9-10).

Every fifty years the Day of Atonement ended with a shofar blast, declaring the wiping away of a nation’s fiscal debt. This was an economic picture of something spiritual – how, only moments before this, YHVH had covered (made atonement for and ‘wiped away’) the sin of the Jewish people (see Zechariah 3:1-5). The national response was a sober heart filled with humble thanks to God. After the shofar blast, that heart would now blossom with overflowing joy. The gates of praise swung open as the entire Jewish nation began preparations for the pilgrim feast of Sukkot, the Harvest Feast better known as ‘the Feast of Tabernacles.’

As the High Holiday season draws near, it encourages our souls to remember all these shofar-related events. The shofar gives voice to our praise and our intercession. It accompanies our request for God to remember Israel in times of war (Numbers 10:9) and to visit our spiritual gatherings (Numbers 10:7). It is His clarion call to the Jewish people, emphasizing that YHVH never forgets a promise.

How should we then pray?

Pray for God to bring revelation and alignment to believers everywhere concerning His times and seasons (Daniel 2:21; Genesis 1:14-18)
Pray for many Jewish people to reach out to our God during this season of heightened spiritual focus
Pray that YHVH would pour out a spirit of grace and supplications on Israel through a revelation of Messiah Yeshua our Atonement
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s army speedily and in our day

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

A blast from the past

On May 21, 1910, the first modern Jewish city was founded. It was given the name Tel Aviv [Hebrew for ‘Hill of Spring’] borrowed from a Babylonian town mentioned in Ezekiel 3:15. The coat of arms of Tel Aviv featured a red Star of David and a quotation from Jeremiah: “I will build you up again and you will be rebuilt." (Jeremiah 31:4).

Archeologists dig into the hard ground looking for keys to the past. They may uncover a palace or a garbage dump, yet these broken remains throw light on long forgotten kings and commoners – their clothing, food, lifestyles – even their worship and music. For those who love the Bible and Jewish history, the same dynamic exists. Those who dig into the layers of Hebrew history and sift through medieval and rabbinic writings will discover the fundamental richness of the Israeli people, and will gain understanding about the foundational roots of the Jewish faith. There will of course be some surprises along the way, since the currents of tradition sometimes flow in different directions than biblical perspectives do.

This newsletter (the second of three) looks at biblical teachings regarding the Feast of Trumpets (Yom Teru’ah – the day of blowing [of shofars]; the fifth biblical feast in the seventh month of the biblical year as per Leviticus 23:2) as well as at rabbinic and traditional perceptions.

Shofar so good

The two central passages defining and outlining the celebration of the Feast of Trumpets (the Day of Blowing) are Leviticus 23:23-25 and Numbers 29:1:

Again, YHVH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘In the seventh month on the first of the month you shall have a rest [shabbaton], a reminder by blowing (zichron teru’ah), a holy convocation [miqra qodesh]. You shall not do any laborious work, but you shall present an offering by fire to YHVH’” (Leviticus 23:23-25)

“Now in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a holy assembly [miqra qodesh]. You shall do no laborious work. It will be to you a day for blowing [Yom Teruah]” (Numbers 29:1)

The essential ingredients in both passages are:

a wonderful Sabbath rest (a shabbaton), where no professional work is done

a holy convocation (‘being called together’; miqra qodesh) a meeting with a holy and set apart purpose

a special commemoration/remembering (zichron) through blowing (a musical sound called teru’ah) of shofars/trumpets

The Scriptures describe teru’ah as a musical expression of joyous and explosive power:

a shofar blast (Leviticus 25:9; Hosea 5:8; Psalm 81:3/4)

a great shout of joyous praise (2 Samuel 6:15; Ezra 3:11; Job 8:21; Psalm 27:6)

a resounding cymbal clash (Psalm 150:5)

YHVH the designer of the holy trumpet

In Numbers 10, YHVH gives Moses specific instructions about trumpets made of metal – how to make them and how to use them:

YHVH spoke further to Moses, saying, “Make yourself two trumpets of silver, you shall make them of hammered work; and you shall use them for summoning the congregation and breaking camp . . . And when you go to war in your land against the enemy who attacks you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, so that you will be thought of by YHVH your God, and be saved from your enemies. Also, on the day of your joy and at your appointed feasts, and on the first days of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings, and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; and they shall be as a reminder of you before your God. I am YHVH your God” (Numbers 10:1-2, 9-10)

These metal trumpets are to be used to alert the nation regarding breaking camp, military gatherings, spiritual worship and intercessory pleas to the God of Israel.

The idea here is that God hears the blowing of the trumpets, remembers His covenant with the Jewish people and is moved by His own heart of love to respond (see Deuteronomy 7:6-8). The trumpet blast is an intercessory act, reminding YHVH of His prophetic promises over the Jewish people.

The joy of the Lord is our strength

The God of Jacob considers the Feast of Trumpets a joyous convocation. Festive food and drink (and lots of it) are part of the celebration, and YHVH emphasizes that, on this special day His joy is our refuge (Hebrew, ma’oz – stronghold or refuge). This is not a day for tears or fears, for being afraid, for grieving or mourning. It is a holy party day!

Also, Yeshua, Bani, Sherev-Yah, Yamin, Akuv, Shab’tai, Hodi-Yah, Ma’aseh-Yah, Klita, Azar-Yah, Yozavad, Hanan, Plah-Yah, and the Levites explained the Torah [the Mosaic teaching] to the people while the people remained in their place. They read from the scroll from the Teaching of God, translating [from Hebrew to Aramaic] to give the sense so that they understood the reading. Then Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to YHVH your God. Do not mourn or weep.” For all the people were weeping when they heard the words of the Teaching. Then he said to them, “Go, eat the festival foods, drink the sweet drinks, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared. For this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of YHVH is your refuge.” So, the Levites silenced all the people, saying, “Be still, for the day is holy. Do not be grieved.” Then all the people went away to eat, drink, to send portions, and to celebrate a great feast, because they understood the words which had been made known to them. (Nehemiah 8:7-12)

In Nehemiah 8 the nation had just heard the words of Deuteronomy 27-28. They understood that their national Exile was a deserved judgment, and they immediately repented of our national rejection of God’s prophets. The holy celebration of the Feast of Trumpets followed immediately on the heels of a national revival.

Our Jewish people today have followed our national leaders in rejecting the message of the Prophets about Messiah Yeshua (Matthew 23:34-39; Mark 12:1-12). Our need in this awesome hour is to wake up and realize that our existence in the Exile is like that of a bird in a gilded cage. We need to enter into national repentance both in Israel and across the globe.

A fork in the road

A crucial fork in the road was crossed in 33 A.D. when Messiah Yeshua was rejected by Israel’s spiritual authorities and handed over to the Romans to be crucified. If Jerusalem’s then spiritual leadership could have made such a horrific decision to reject the Messiah, these same leaders could eventually make errant decisions about a host of other issues – including the nature of the New Covenant, the status of the Mosaic covenant, the way of salvation, the authority of the rabbinic leadership, the date of the New Year, emphases associated with the Feast of Trumpets, etc.

By circa 200 AD Rabbi Judah the Prince (the editor of the Mishnah) made a valiant attempt at justifying an obvious departure from the biblical New Year date, when he proclaimed that there are actually a whole bunch of New Years. He explained that there are “four New Years – on the first of Nisan is the New Year for kings and festivals; on the first of Elul is the New Year of the tithe of cattle…; on the first of Tishrei is the New Year for years, for release and for jubilee years, for plantation and for tithing vegetables; on the first of Shevat is the New Year for trees” (TB, Tractate Rosh Hashanah, Mishna 1, 2a). This teaching seems to be his attempt to justify an accommodation to the Babylonian calendar. His argument has been accepted in rabbinic Judaism as the kosher solution.

This same Rabbi Judah added (with no biblical warrant): “All are judged on New Year and the separate dooms are sealed each in its time – on Passover in respect of produce, on Pentecost in respect of fruit, on Tabernacles judgment is passed in respect of rain, and man is judged on New Year and his doom is sealed on the Day of Atonement” (Babylonian Talmud [TB], Tractate Rosh Hashana 16a).

Another Rabbi (Yochanan bar Nappaha) declared (again, with no biblical authority): “Three books are opened (in heaven) on New Year, one for the thoroughly wicked, one for the thoroughly righteous, and one for the intermediate. The thoroughly righteous are forthwith inscribed definitively in the book of life. The thoroughly wicked are forthwith inscribed definitively in the book of death. The doom of the intermediate is suspended from New Year till the Day of Atonement. If they deserve well, they are inscribed in the book of life. If they do not deserve well, they are inscribed in the book of death” (TB, Tractate Rosh Hashana 16b). This tradition has led to Rosh Hashanah being described as Yom Ha-Din – the Day of Judgment.

These traditional rabbinic perspectives have shaped the way most Jewish people see and relate to the Feast of Trumpets. Their emphases are quite different from those that the God of Israel conveyed in Nehemiah 8, Leviticus 23 and Number 29.

How sweet it is!

The traditions associated with the Feast of Trumpets are deeply moving; the liturgy and celebrations are a rich part of many Jewish people’s lives. The sons and daughters of Jacob nibble on apple wedges and honey in hopes for a sweet coming year. They bless each other with wishes that each one will be inscribed in the Book of Life at this season (more on this in our third newsletter). Worldwide, synagogues register their highest attendance as the High Holy Days or ‘Days of Awe’ approach. As the Day of Atonement draws closer, there is a heightened awareness of the dynamic of sin in the Jewish community.

One of the callings that we have as the remnant of Israel – those Messianic Jews who have accepted Yeshua as our Messiah and atonement – is to celebrate the Feast of Trumpets in full light of these above-mentioned biblical teachings. We hold up the flag of God’s word and the glorious person of Messiah Yeshua, and call our people back to Him and His ways. As the Jewish world celebrates the Feast of Trumpets this year, would you join in with us in asking the Redeemer of Israel to shine His glory on His people, and that we would receive Him with open arms and shining eyes!

How should we then pray?

Pray for God to bring revelation and alignment to believers everywhere concerning His times and seasons (Daniel 2:21; Genesis 1:14-18)

Pray for many Jewish people to reach out to our God during this season of heightened spiritual focus

Pray that YHVH would pour out a spirit of grace and supplications on Israel through a revelation of Messiah Yeshua our atonement

Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s army speedily and in our day

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

Jeroboam’s Feast

In the days of King Solomon, there was a valiant warrior whose name was Jeroboam (see 1 Kings 11:28). King Solomon promoted him to an important governmental post. But YHVH had even bigger plans. He sent Ahijah the Shilonite to prophesy over Jeroboam and to commission him to overthrow Solomon’s rule over the ten northern tribes of the Jewish people:

Then Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite of Zeredah, Solomon’s servant . . . went out of Jerusalem, [and] the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him on the road. Now Ahijah . . . said to Jeroboam, “. . . This is what YHVH the God of Israel says: ‘Behold, I am going to tear the kingdom away from the hand of Solomon and give you ten tribes (but he shall have one tribe, for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel), because they have abandoned Me, and have worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the sons of Ammon. And they have not walked in My ways, doing what is right in My sight and keeping My statutes and My ordinances, as his father David did. Nevertheless, I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, but I will make him ruler all the days of his life, for the sake of My servant David whom I chose, who kept My commandments and My statutes . . . But to his son I will give one tribe, so that My servant David may always have a lamp before Me in Jerusalem, the city where I have chosen for Myself to put My name. However, I will take you, and you shall reign over all that you desire, and you shall be king over Israel. Then it shall be, that if you listen to all that I command you and walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight by keeping My statutes and My commandments, as My servant David did, then I will be with you and build you an enduring house as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you’” . . . Solomon sought therefore to put Jeroboam to death. But Jeroboam set out and fled to Egypt to Shishak king of Egypt, and he was in Egypt until the death of Solomon (1 Kings 11:26-40)

Jeroboam was YHVH’s tool to weaken the Davidic dynasty. This happened because King Solomon had not walked in God’s ways. He did not do what was right in God’s sight and did not keep YHVH’s statutes and ordinances. In turn, Jeroboam was given the opportunity to listen to all that God was commanding him, to walk in God’s ways, and to do what was right in YHVH’s sight by keeping His statutes and His commandments. But, like Solomon, Jeroboam also flagrantly violated the terms of his own calling.

Four wrongs do not make a right

Those who do not learn from history, it is said, are fated to repeat that history. The Bible describes Jeroboam’s sins in detail:

Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and lived there. And he went out from there and built Penuel. And Jeroboam said in his heart, “Now the kingdom will return to the house of David. If this people go up to offer sacrifices in the House of YHVH in Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will return to their lord, to Rehoboam king of Judah; and they will kill me and return to Rehoboam king of Judah.” So the king consulted, and he made two golden calves; and he said to the people, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem; behold your gods, Israel, that brought you up from the Land of Egypt.” And he set up one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. Now this thing became a sin, for the people went to worship before the one as far as Dan. And he made houses on high places, and appointed priests from all the people who were not of the sons of Levi. Jeroboam also instituted a feast in the eighth month on the fifteenth day of the month, like the feast that is in Judah, and he went up to the altar. He did so in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves which he had made. And he stationed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made. Then he went up to the altar which he had made in Bethel on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, the month that he had devised in his own heart. And he instituted a feast for the sons of Israel and went up to the altar to burn incense (1 Kings 12:25-33)

Jeroboam was motivated by fear of the people and not by a holy fear of YHVH. He realized that the God of Israel had not granted him to rule over Jerusalem and the House of YHVH. He feared that the yearly pilgrimages of the ten tribes to Jerusalem would undermine his royal credibility and eventually lead to his own overthrow. As a result, he deliberately violated YHVH’s commands in Leviticus 23:23-25 that the Feast of Trumpets should be in the seventh month:

YHVH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘In the seventh month on the first of the month you shall have a rest, a reminder by blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation. You shall not do any laborious work, but you shall present an offering by fire to YHVH.’”

By moving the date of that Feast, he hoped to ensure that his ten tribes would have no difficulties attending his ‘new and improved’ feast celebrations.

Jeroboam also moved the center of worship from Jerusalem’s Temple Mount to Bethel (less than a day’s journey from Jerusalem) and also to Dan in the north (for those Jews who lived in the Galilee and the Golan). Yet this change of location was also forbidden by Moses:

You are not allowed to sacrifice the Passover in any of your towns which YHVH your God is giving you; but only at the place where YHVH your God chooses to establish His name, you shall sacrifice the Passover in the evening at sunset, at the time that you came out of Egypt. You shall cook and eat it in the place which YHVH your God chooses. In the morning you are to return to your tents (Deuteronomy 16:5-7; see also Deuteronomy 12:5-21)

Jeroboam also chose priests who were not from the tribe of Levi, to oversee the worship, the burning of incense and the sacrifices. Jeroboam’s decision was in clear violation of YHVH’s commands:

And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and to his sons from among the sons of Israel, to perform the service of the sons of Israel at the tent of meeting and to make atonement on behalf of the sons of Israel (Numbers 8:19; see also 8:14-18; 2 Chronicles 133:9; 11:14-15; Numbers 3:8-10, 40-41)

Jeroboam himself went up to the altar in Bethel to burn incense. But this calling was only given to the descendants of Aaron; Jeroboam was a descendant of Ephraim (1 Kings 11:26) and thus not qualified to burn priestly incense:

The priest Eleazar took the bronze censers which the men who were burned had offered, and they hammered them out as plating for the altar, as a reminder to the sons of Israel so that no layman, anyone who was not of the descendants of Aaron, would approach to burn incense before YHVH; then he would not become like Korah and his group – just as YHVH had spoken to him through Moses (Numbers 16:39-40; see also 2 Chronicles 26:16-20)

The ten tribes of Israel were in a bad way. They were now stuck in the middle with a wrong dynasty, a wrong feast date, a wrong worship city, a wrong priesthood, and a wrong master of ceremonies. All these were the result of a leader with a wrong heart.

No Messiah, no Temple, no atonement, no New Covenant

Nine hundred years later, the leaders of the Jewish people – both the High Priestly sons of Zadok (Bnei Tzadok or Sadducees) and the self-appointed scribes and interpreters of the Teaching of Moses (the Perushim or Pharisees) – were involved in rejecting Messiah Yeshua, handing Him over to the occupation forces of Rome and catalyzing His crucifixion:

From that time Yeshua began to point out to His disciples that it was necessary for Him to go to Jerusalem and to suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and to be killed, and to be raised up on the third day (Matthew 16:21)

He took the Twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all the things that have been written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished. For He will be handed over to the Gentiles, and will be ridiculed, and abused, and spit upon, and after they have flogged Him, they will kill Him. And on the third day He will rise.” (Luke 18:31-33)

Yeshua declared, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who have been sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. Behold, your House is being left to you desolate!” (Matthew 23:37-38)

The rejection of the Messiah and the destruction of the House of YHVH resulted in the practical removal of the authority of the Davidic dynasty, as well as no national atonement for the Jewish people. Though the New Covenant had been ratified (see Hebrews 9:11-15) at that Passover season nearly 2,000 years ago, the majority of Israel’s sons and daughters have not yet entered into its provisions and blessings (see Hebrews 1:1-2):

For the sons of Israel will live for many days without a king or leader, without sacrifice or memorial stone, and without ephod or household idols. Afterward the sons of Israel will return and seek YHVH their God and David their king. And they will come trembling to YHVH and to His goodness in the last days (Hosea 3:4-5)

When God’s word challenges what our heart feels

Jeroboam had established a ‘kosher-style Judaism’ which was not really kosher. Instead of following YHVH’s calendar in Leviticus 23, he tweaked God’s clear commandments and devised in his own heart a different month for celebrating the Feast of Trumpets. The Hebrew Scriptures warn against such behavior. Moses challenges the Jewish people to remember that the tassels (tzitzit) on the borders of their robes have a spiritual purpose: “It shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of YHVH, so that you will do them and not follow your own heart and your own eyes, which led you to prostitute yourselves” (Numbers 15:39). Yet the period of the Hebrew Judges was characterized by Samuel in exactly this way: “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25). And Solomon concludes the matter: “Every person’s way is right in his own eyes, but YHVH examines the hearts” (Proverbs 21:12).

The Prophets saw that a day was coming when self-appointed teachers of the Mosaic Covenant would actually twist the plain meaning of the Torah (a Hebrew word meaning ‘Teaching’). Isaiah warned that such violation of God’s word would lead to spiritual shipwreck: “To the Teaching (Torah) and to the testimony (te’udah)! If they do not speak in accordance with this word, it is because they have no dawn” (Isaiah 8:20). One hundred years later Jeremiah declared that the spiritual leadership of the Jewish people was in mortal danger of reshaping Judaism into a leaky vessel that would not find favor in the sight of YHVH: “For My people have committed two evils: They have abandoned Me, the Fountain of living waters – to carve out for themselves cisterns, broken cisterns that do not hold water” (Jeremiah 2:13).

From this vantage point the words of Daniel the prophet take on added weight. He describes the final manifestation of evil – what is usually referred to as the anti-Messiah or anti-Christ – as someone like Jeroboam, who changes God’s appointed times and seasons:

“This is what he said: ‘The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on the earth which will be different from all the other kingdoms, and will devour the whole earth and trample it down and crush it . . . And another will arise after them, and he will be different from the previous ones and will humble three kings. And he will speak against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law” (Daniel 7:23-25)

When seven becomes eight

YHVH revealed to Moses that His own divine calendar (which is also called the Hebrew calendar; see Leviticus 23:1-2) begins in the Spring: “Now YHVH said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, ‘This month shall be the beginning of months for you. It is to be the first month of the year to you’” (Exodus 12:1-2). This month is known in the Bible by its Hebrew name – Aviv [which means ‘Spring’]: “On this day in the month of Aviv, you are about to go forth . . . Therefore, you shall keep this ordinance at its appointed time from year to year” (Exodus 13:4, 10; see also Exodus 23:15; 34:18; Deuteronomy 16:1).

Yet modern rabbinic practice calls this month by a different name – Nisan (from the Akkadian nisānu, meaning ‘sanctuary’ or ‘sacrifice’, or possibly from Sumerian nisag meaning ‘first fruits’) and lists it as the seventh month of the year. The Jewish New Year according to the rabbinical reckoning does not occur in Aviv (which is biblically the first month) but in Tishrei (from the Akkadian word tašrītu or ‘beginning’) – the month which the Bible describes in Hebrew as Eitanim (1 Kings 8:2) – that is, the seventh biblical month. These are significant changes in times and seasons. How did this change of calendar – this departure from the biblical pattern – happen?

In the days of Ezra and Nehemiah, the calendar described in the Bible still reflected the biblical New Year as being in the Spring: “Then Josiah celebrated the Passover to YHVH in Jerusalem, and they slaughtered the Passover animals on the fourteenth day of the first month” (2 Chronicles 35:1). Yet in Persia, at approximately the same time period, the pagan Babylonian and Akkadian month-names were what was being used in foreign courts. The Jewish people still used the biblical calendar’s year order, but began calling the Hebrew months by pagan names. Aviv was now referred to as Nisan, but it was still seen as the first month of the year: “In the first month, which is the month Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, Pur, that is the lot, was cast before Haman from day to day and from month to month, until the twelfth month, that is the month Adar” (Esther 3:7). For more background on this, see ‘Raiders of the Lost Jewish New Year’ and ‘The blast of the shofar.’

By the rivers of Babylon

The twelve Jewish tribes went into Exile between 722 B.C. (Assyria) and 587/6 B.C. (Babylon). They took the 12 original names of the Hebrew months with them. These included:

Aviv (the first, today called Nisan – Exodus 13:4)
Ziv (the second, today called Iyar – 1 Kings 6:1)
Eitanim (the seventh, today called Tishrei – 1 Kings 8:2)
Bul (the eighth, today called Heshvan – 1 Kings 6:38)

When Israel returned from Babylonian Exile, according to Rabbi Hanina bar Hama (d. 250 A.D.) “the month names came up with them [with the exiles] from Babylon” (Jerusalem Talmud, Rosh HaShanah 1:2, 56d). Babylonian names gradually replaced the original Hebrew names after the days of Ezra and Nehemiah. Today eight of the twelve original Hebrew names of the months have disappeared from our sources. The Babylonian month-names are for the most part names of Babylonian demons, even as most modern Western months are based on the names of Roman gods, while European days of the week are taken from Norse and Germanic gods. The Babylonian royal calendar began its year in Tishrei (biblical Eitanim) and so the Jewish people gradually fitted their calendar into this accepted international calendar. The Jewish calendar was swept along by the riptide of Babylonian paganism. It was still based on the biblical lunar cycle, but its month-names and New Year now differed from the biblical calendar. Whereas Jeroboam moved the Feast of Trumpets from the seventh to the eighth month, the rabbis moved the New Year from Aviv to Eitanim – from Nisan to Tishrei. All of this was done without biblical authority, yet today it is considered part of the normative traditions of Judaism.

The Karaite movement (an early medieval Biblicist form of Judaism) celebrates the New Year according to the Biblical commandment, in the month of Nisan, in the Spring.

When Messiah Yeshua returns, the whole planet will follow the Hebrew calendar. Ezekiel 45:18 prophesies a future Jerusalem holiday on the 1st of Aviv, while Zechariah 14:16-19, 8:18-19 and Isaiah 66:23 show that the entire planet will be keeping the Jewish calendar. Greek, Roman and Norse titans will all bow the knee and declare that Messiah Yeshua and His calendar are sovereign over the whole earth (Isaiah 45:23; Philippians 2:10-11).

And what about Messianic Jewish traditions?

The simple facts are that most Jews (and Gentiles, too!) are not aware of all the above historical information. Most Messianic Jews are similarly unaware of these facts. In an effort to identify with our people, we strive to imitate the traditions we learned as children or have heard about in old movies and Jewish literature. For most Messianic Jews, if it was good enough for Rabbi Akiva or the Lubavitcher Rebbe, it’s good enough for us. Come the High Holidays, most Messianic Jews publicize their Jewish New Year services and exchange the traditional Jewish greetings which are based on the rabbinic perspective.

The unquestioning acceptance of rabbinic tradition here reveals some fault lines in some streams of the Messianic Jewish movement.

Other examples of this include a blind acceptance of how rabbinic theology refuses to accept the teaching of Jeremiah 31:31-32. Jeremiah declares that the New Covenant is not like the Mosaic covenant, and that it is a different covenant: “Behold, days are coming, declares YHVH, when I will make a new covenant with the House of Israel and the House of Judah – not like the covenant which I made with their fathers on the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the Land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them, declares YHVH” (Jeremiah 31:31-32).

The rabbis disagree with the ‘peshat’ (the plain exegetical meaning) of this text. Instead, they define ‘New Covenant’ as simply being a renewed Mosaic Covenant. I have had the privilege of sitting down with some of those who are considered to be top Messianic scholars and asking them why they buy the rabbinic reasoning here, and how that fits with accurate exegesis. Their responses were not what I had expected, and fell short of the apostolic standard that Paul exhorts us all to follow: “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a worker who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).

There is a certain amount of confusion among some Messianic leaders and teachers on these points. Some teach that Jewish identity must be Mosaic-based, and that rabbinic expressions are the quintessential expressions which we need to follow closely. This tendency in turn has led to encouraging Gentiles to convert to rabbinic Judaism, to mold Messianic liturgy based on rabbinic liturgy and theology, etc. These positions can be problematic, because rabbinic theology often fundamentally disagrees with Yeshua’s New Covenant teachings. Two historical vignettes on this point follow.

Rachmiel Frydland and my haredi friend

Rachmiel Frydland was a Polish Jewish Messianic teacher and scholar who survived the Holocaust, losing his entire family. He had studied at the Mir Yeshiva in Poland before becoming a believer. His Holocaust story is available on Amazon. His first language was Yiddish, a language that I also speak. Once I had the privilege of spending a week in 1977 as his house guest. We had deep conversations about Jewish life in Poland prior to World War II. In a discussion we had regarding the differences between halachic and biblical definitions of ‘Who is a Jew,’ Rachmiel emphatically stated: “If we give the rabbis the authority to determine who is a Jew, then we give them the authority to determine who is the Messiah.”

Another interesting interaction occurred at the brit (circumcision or bris) of one of my grandsons in Jerusalem. A haredi (ultra-Orthodox) Jewish man who has an ongoing relationship with one of my sons, asked my other son, “Why is it that you Messianic Jews have this fixation to imitate rabbinic traditions when you yourselves know that rabbinic teaching is fundamentally opposed to what you believe – the Messiahship of Yeshua, the validity of atonement and forgiveness through the New Covenant, etc.?”

Digging deeper – Jewish Roots and Hebraic Roots

I love the roots of my people – spiritual, historical, cultural, musical, culinary, etc. I have seen that sometimes in the Messianic movement the terms ‘Jewish Roots’ and Hebraic Roots’ mean different things to different people. Sometimes it can mean very positive things. At other times it means the acceptance of rabbinic authority, rabbinic anti-Messianic perspectives, and spiritual control that borders on witchcraft and misogyny. I encourage all who would pursue Jewish and Hebraic roots to weigh carefully how hidden agendas may spin out here. I have written a book titled ‘How to be Messianic without becoming Meshuggeh (*crazy): A common sense approach to kosher Messianic foundations’ which delves into these issues and more, for those who would like to go deeper.

How should we then pray?

Pray for God to bring revelation and alignment to believers everywhere concerning His times and seasons (Daniel 2:21; Genesis 1:14-18)
Pray for Messiah’s body to become even more attuned to how the God of Jacob is using His calendar as a catalyst and a holy milestone in bringing forth the salvation of Israel as well as life from the dead for the world
Pray for revelation specifically for Bible teachers, pastors and teachers of the Word about these issues
Pray for the Jewish people who are turning their thoughts to deep issues of sin and atonement at this time – that YHVH would pour out a spirit of grace and supplications on us through a revelation of Messiah Yeshua our atonement
Pray for those who have given their lives to communicating the message of Messiah Yeshua’s atonement to His own precious people – that they might be encouraged, receive needed provision, and experience God’s enabling presence
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s army speedily and in our day

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

McDonald's and the Second Coming

The great Yiddish writer Sholem Aleichem authored a trilogy dealing with Tevye the Milkman (Tevye der milchiker, known today as ‘Fiddler on the Roof’), his relative Menakhem Mendel and his wife Sheyne-Sheyndl (The Letters of Menakhem-Mendl and Sheyne-Sheyndl), and Motel the Cantor’s son (Motel Peysi dem Khazns). In the second book, Sheyne-Sheyndl humorously declares her faltering faith in the God of Israel: “God will provide, but how will He provide until He provides?”

As we peer into the gray fog of the onrushing future, we sometimes ask ourselves that same exact question – “But who can endure the day of His coming?” (Malachi 3:2).

Some rabbis in the 3^rd and 4^th centuries A.D. made similar confessions:

Rabbi ‘Ulla said, “Let him [the Messiah] come, but let me not see him.”

Rabbah said likewise, “Let him come, but let me not see him” . . . Abaye inquired of Rabbah: “What is your reason [for not wishing to see him]? Shall we say, because of the birth pangs [preceding the advent] of the Messiah?”

Rabbi Yohanan said likewise, “Let him come, and let me not see him.” Resh Lakish said to him: “Why so?” . . . But [his unwillingness to want see the Messiah] is because it is written [in Jeremiah 30:6]: ‘Ask now, and see whether a man can travail with child? Why therefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness?’

Returning to the front pages of history

Life in Israel is spicy – never a dull moment here. Our very existence is lived smack in the middle of a swirling butter churn. Apocalyptic and ‘mostly apocalyptic’ events are a daily occurrence. This is the warp and the woof of prophecy: God is returning His dry bones to the Land of Promise – yet we as a nation are without the indwelling Holy Spirit (see Ezekiel 37:8-9). Our malevolent neighbors (see Ezekiel 25:12-14; 35:10-15) and those who balefully share the Land with us (see Ezekiel 36:2-7) are like thorns and briars to us (see Numbers 33:55). These resulting conflicts continue to trigger international anti-Semitic sympathies for our enemies. This process will hit its zenith in a military invasion by the united nations of the world and the subsequent superpower division of the Jewish homeland (see Joel 3:1-2; Zechariah 14:1-2). The return of Messiah Yeshua – the Second Coming – then ensues with a vengeance (see Deuteronomy 32:43; Psalm 79:10; 149:7; Isaiah 34:8; 63:4; Jeremiah 50:28; 51:11). Yeshua’s two-edged sword will be stretched out against all the nations who hate Zion (see Isaiah 34:1-8; 66:10-16).

We are beholding the restoration of the Jewish people to their land (mostly in unbelief). This is a central part of YHVH’s strategy. The God of Jacob is returning Israel to the front pages of history, and the world for the most part does not like it. An old Yiddish proverb notes that “If God lived on Earth, people would break his windows.” Since it is considered in bad taste (and a trifle dangerous) to break God’s windows, the nations have come to the conclusion that their second-best choice is to vent their anger on God’s chosen people the Jews. Therefore we should not be surprised by current events.

Restoration is a process

The majority of Israelis consider that Israel’s survival, health and flowering rest on the following three pillars: a Western form of democracy, some sort of expression of Judaism/Jewishness, and a robust military/intelligence community with a universal draft.

Yet not all of these pillars have characterized history. Western democracy was unknown to Abraham, Moses, David and the Maccabees. The sons of Asaph and the prophets Isaiah and Malachi would be shocked at modern Reform and Conservative streams of Judaism, and would have strongly objected to major tenets of today’s Orthodox Judaism. On the other hand, Joshua, David and Joab would have been familiar with and supportive of Jewish military prowess and the accurate intelligence needed to run those models.

Today, many in Israel would not want to see the re-establishment of a Davidic dynasty, or the growth of a Jewish faith expression rooted in the biblical covenants. A growing number of Israeli citizens on the Left side of the political aisle are actively questioning or even opposing the value of strengthening and defending a Jewish state. One stream of recent anti-government demonstrations calls for the weakening or dissolving of universal draft as a national value.

It is worth remembering that God’s restoration of His people does not envision the triumph of an ‘Athens on the Gihon’ (1 Kings 1:38, 45). Isaiah 2:3 prophesies the flowering of the New Covenant in Jerusalem (‘Ki mi-Tziyon tetzeh Torah’ – from out of Zion will come the New Covenant teaching). For that to become a reality, there will have to be many changes made. Many secular and religious Jewish Israelis (as well as non-Jewish citizens of the Jewish state) are not prepared for or excited about such coming changes.

The field is wide open for us to pray for the realization of God’s prophetic words over this people and this land.

The coconut shell game – praying for Israel’s leaders

There is a time-honored confidence game – a swindle – known as the shell game or coconut shell game. A ball or an object is hidden underneath one of three coconut shells as they are quickly shuffled back and forth on a flat surface. The victim is invited to bet money, attempting to correctly choose the shell which conceals the object. In most cases the victim ends up ruefully forking over his money, as he was unable to keep track of the sleight-of-hand.

Israel’s political mosaic has much in common with the coconut shell game. Three basic coconut shells exist – Right, Left and Religious. But again, these three blocs are amazingly fragmented and have shattered into many sub-groups – sometimes due to political worldviews or theology, but often due to personal ambition. Due to the bitter and broken relationships between most party leaders and their rivals in opposing parties, sometimes two parties may agree to ‘work together’ – to hide under one coconut shell, appearing to be a new ‘unity party’ but in fact are anything but that. At one point in Israel’s chequered political history, nearly every political party has entered into marriages of convenience with their sworn enemies. Today’s coalition and opposition also bear testimony to this reality.

Here are three examples: Israel’s most decorated soldier, former Prime Minister Ehud Barak (whose party barely crossed the electoral threshold in recent elections) has been meeting and planning mass civil disturbances as well as organizing mass resistance to military service – all in an effort to take down PM Bibi Netanyahu, his hated opponent. Right wing former Deputy Prime Minister Avigdor Lieberman is accusing his own Right wing and all religious parties of being wild-eyed crazed zealots, labelling them as ‘Messianists’ (Meshichistim) – with that term being used as an extreme insult. Itamar Ben-Gvir, Minister of National Security in Israel’s present government, was a follower of Rabbi Meir Kahane (this man was blacklisted as a terrorist by U.S. authorities). He was much involved with the Kach organization in times past, and is now in charge of overseeing and arresting pro-Leftist demonstrators who are regularly blocking Tel Aviv’s freeways and lighting bonfires on its asphalt roads.

Due to a highly successful campaign of disinformation and propaganda, most non-Israelis (and many Israelis as well) are simply unable to tell what object is hiding under what coconut shell. They drink the soup which is being spoon-fed to them by national Main Stream Media, thinking that they fully understand current events in Israel.

For those of us who want pray for these leaders, some investigative reporting must be done. We must petition God for revelation and discernment regarding what lies below the surface of the swiftly flowing river of Israeli politics. Not every Israeli news source (or even every Israeli Messianic newsletter) is a clear stream in this regard.

When did ‘Messianism’ become a dirty word in Hebrew?

The use of the term ‘Messianist’ has been morphing lately in Israel. A recent anti-government demonstration displayed signs attacking Bibi’s coalition, declaring ‘Atem meshichei hurban’ – ‘You are the Messianists of the Destruction’ (referring to the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 A.D.). A screaming front-page headline of October 2, 2018 in Israel’s premier newspaper Yediot Aharonot, quoted politician Avigdor Lieberman declaring that Member of Knesset (MK and later Prime Minister) Naftali Bennett “is a Messianic and zealot Rightist.” Bennett later was PM, presiding over a coalition that included Lieberman. On July 9, 2023 anti-government activists plastered posters all over the residence of MK Ariel Kallner which declared in red and black bold fonts ‘Boosha la-Likud – kan gar Meshichist’ (Shame on the Likud – here lives a Messianist!). A Facebook post by Ehud Barak declares that PM Netanyahu “is being dragged along by a Messianic stream, is standing next to the abyss and is insisting on striding forward!” And two more: a TikTok meme asks a rhetorical question: “Is the Messianist Religious Zionism movement seizing control of Israel?” And a last example: “Government Minister Rafi Peretz, recently a progressive, an IAF pilot and a rabbi, has been recently involved in the Religious Zionism movement – which is in fact a delusional Messianist cult, darkness from Medieval times.”

These selected examples reveal cracks of division and extremist rhetoric and behavior growing among Israeli citizens. Those seeking to overthrow the present government have no qualms about classifying all religious Jews as being dangerous ‘enemies of the people’ and as crazy ‘Messianists.’

At the same time, there are real and valid concerns regarding the thuggish nature and goals of some of individuals and parties on the Religious/Right wing – just as there are real and valid concerns regarding the woke, anti-biblical and revolutionary nature and goals of some on the Left side of the political spectrum. Much prayer is needed in every direction.

McDonald’s and the Second Coming

Sometimes our minds play out certain scenarios: we imagine that when Yeshua returns to set up His Jerusalem-centered kingdom on earth, we will be able to watch the entire event on CNN or FOX, and then go out and grab a Big Mac or a Quarter Pounder with Cheese at McDonald’s. We may embrace the sovereign reality of these coming apocalyptic events, but we forget how many changes will be involved as these birth pangs get ushered in.

C.S. Lewis once wrote that God whispers in our pleasure and shouts in our pains; they are his megaphone to raise a deaf world. The Return of Messiah Yeshua will not only be glorious; it will also be dramatic and literally earth-shaking. As Haggai 2:1-9, 21-22 explains, everything created will be shaken, and only that which is unshakeable will remain standing. Hebrews 12:26-27 sums up this dynamic: “And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, ‘Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also the heaven.’ This expression, ‘yet once more,’ denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken – as of created things – so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.”

Stuck in the moment

Bono, U2’s famous vocalist, wrote a remorseful song for a friend of his who took his own life. He elegized him, regretting that his friend had gotten “stuck in the moment” and couldn’t get out or break free of the deception in time.

We do not want to marry the spirit of the age – the popular worldview or weltanschauung, as is said in German. Israel’s salvation will not come through establishing a stronger Western democracy, or through a national embrace of the broken cistern of Orthodox Judaism and its varied permutations, or through a misplaced national trust in our ultimate ability to defend ourselves, to defeat all our enemies and to neutralize their evil strategies.

How should we then pray?

Pray for believers around the globe to receive deeper understanding and revelation of God’s strategies in restoring His people to the Land and to Himself

Pray for lovers of Israel to receive clarity and strategic guidance on how to pray for the Jewish people’s leaders

Pray for the nation of Israel to receive God’s heart and perspectives on how He will change and transform our nation through Messiah Yeshua

Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s prophetic Jewish army throughout the earth

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org

Don’t put a stumbling block in the path of a blind man (Leviticus 19:14)

Then YHVH spoke to Moses, saying:

“Speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘You shall be holy, for I YHVH your God am holy. Every one of you shall revere his mother and his father, and you shall keep My Sabbaths; I am YHVH your God. Do not turn to idols or make for yourselves cast metal gods; I am YHVH your God. You shall not curse a person who is deaf, nor put a stumbling block before a person who is blind, but you shall revere your God; I am YHVH” (Leviticus 19:1-4, 14).

The God of Jacob tells us that our own godly behavior should be rooted in the example of God’s own character. We follow His commandments because He is holy. We are made in His image (imago dei, as Latin theologians and Renaissance philosophers would describe it) and we want to imitate Him (imitatio dei). This is how God guides our ethical behavior throughout the Bible:

And God said: “Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness” . . . And God created man in His own image. In the image of God He created him. Male and female created He them ( Genesis 1:26–27)

In the day when God created man, He made him in the likeness of God. He created them male and female, and He blessed them, and He named them ‘Man’ on the day when they were created. When Adam lived one hundred and thirty years, and became the father of a son in his own likeness, according to his image, and named him ‘Seth’ (Genesis 5:1–3)

One who sheds the blood of man, by man his blood will be shed. For in the image of God He made man (Genesis 9:6)

Therefore, you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5:48)

Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful (Luke 6:36)

Therefore, be imitators of God, as beloved children (Ephesians 5:1)

Be imitators of me, just as I also am [an imitator] of Messiah (1 Corinthians 11:1)

The opposite of reverence for God is cruelty to one’s fellow humans and idolatry. To put a stumbling block in the path of a blind man is a violation of love, kindness and honesty. Such behavior is cruel and malevolent. YHVH describes rudeness to one’s parents as evil. And idolatry – the worship of anything other than YHVH, or the encouraging of others to worship anything other than the God of Jacob – is a foundational violation of God’s holiness, says Moses.

What is a stone of stumbling?

The Scriptures refer to stumbling stones a number of times. In certain contexts, the words refer to physical impediments or obstacles, like those preventing the exiled Jewish people from returning to the Promised Land: “Go through, go through the gates. Clear a way for the people! Build up, build up the highway. Remove the stones, lift up a flag over the peoples” (Isaiah 62:10-11).

At other times the focus of the phrase is on an individual’s sin and wrongdoing, which can cause other people to stumble (see Psalm 140:4-5):

They will fling their silver into the streets, and their gold will become an abhorrent thing. Their silver and their gold will not be able to save them on the day of the wrath of YHVH. They cannot satisfy their appetite, nor can they fill their stomachs, because their wrongdoing has become a cause of stumbling (Ezekiel 7:19)

So shall it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire (Matthew 13:40-42).

A third use of the term relates to idolatry – engaging in it (in one’s heart or outwardly) or encouraging others to do so:

This is what YHVH God says: “Anyone of the house of Israel who sets up his idols in his heart, puts in front of his face the stumbling block of his wrongdoing, and then comes to the prophet, I YHVH will let Myself answer him in the matter in view of the multitude of his idolsֹ” (Ezekiel 14:4)

Since they ministered to them before their idols and became a stumbling block of wrongdoing to the House of Israel, for that reason I have sworn against them, declares the Lord YHVH, that they shall suffer the punishment for their wrongdoing (Ezekiel 44:12)

The Bible – a history book whose principles have not expired

The Bible was given to the world through the Jewish people (see Romans 3:1-2). Part of this gift came from God’s heart to guide and instruct the nations (see 1 Corinthians 10:11). At the same time, these Scriptures are a totally trustworthy history of the Jewish people, waxing eloquent about God’s heart, calling, strategies and priority for the sons and daughters of Jacob (John 4:22; Romans 9:4-5). And here is a point worth stressing: the historical principles laid out in the Hebrew Scriptures still chart and shape the destiny of Israel. Seven of these principles – national stumbling stones for the Jewish people in the past, the present and the future – will be considered in this newsletter.

Stumbling stone #1 – Rebellion against the House of David

King David’s grandson Rehoboam watched as his kingdom disintegrated before his very eyes – divine payback for his father Solomon’s sins (see 1 Kings 11). The ten tribes of Israel broke away from his rule, leaving him to reign over the much tinier state of the two tribes of Judah and Simeon.

The king did not listen to the people because it was a turn of events from YHVH, in order to establish His word . . . When all Israel saw that the king had not listened to them, the people replied to the king, saying, “What share do we have in David? We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse. To your tents, Israel! Now look after your own House, David!” So Israel went away to their tents . . . Israel has broken with the House of David to this day (1 Kings 12:15-19)

That rebellion has continued up to our day. David’s Greater Son Messiah Yeshua is still not honored and accepted by the majority of Israel’s leaders and populace. Here is a great intercessory challenge: to pray that the Jewish people repent for rejecting David their king (Hosea 3:5) and Yeshua their Messiah (see Matthew 23:39)

Stumbling stone #2 – Broken cisterns

Back in the days of the kings of Judah, the Scriptures tell us that the kings, the priests and the people mocked the messengers of God, despising His words and scoffing at His prophets (2 Chronicles 36:11-16). The spiritual leaders of the Jewish people found themselves ‘in the dock’ before the God of Jacob, who prophetically accused them of rebellion against the Word of God through establishing false religious traditions:

My people have exchanged their glory for that which is of no benefit. Be appalled at this, you heavens, and shudder, be very desolate, declares YHVH. For My people have committed two evils: They have abandoned Me, the fountain of living waters – to carve out for themselves cisterns, broken cisterns that do not hold water (Jeremiah 2:11-13).

In His day, Messiah Yeshua confronted the developers of what would become the traditions of rabbinic Judaism, challenging with the same message as Jeremiah had presented (Matthew 23).

Rabbinic Judaism’s foundations and influence continue up to our day, and Messiah Yeshua’s challenge remains as valid today as it was in Second Temple times. Here is another huge intercessory challenge: to pray that the Jewish people and our leaders will repent for rejecting Yeshua ‘the Fountain of living waters’ (see Jeremiah 17:13) and whole-heartedly receive the living waters of the New Covenant (Hebrews 12:24).

Stumbling stone #3 – Wanting to get accepted by the nations

Moses warned the Jewish people that a spiritual temptation would come upon the entire nation in days to come – the desire to be accepted into the pagan world and be part of the superpower ‘Old Boys’ Network.’ This political hunger would lead to an embracing of pagan values and demonic influences:

When YHVH your God cuts off from you the nations which you are going in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and live in their land, be careful that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from your presence, and that you do not inquire about their gods, saying, “How do these nations serve their gods, that I also may do likewise?” You shall not behave this way toward YHVH your God, because every abominable act which YHVH hates, they have done for their gods. For they even burn their sons and daughters in the fire for their gods (Deuteronomy 12:29-31)

This same misguided passion was manifested in the days of Saul, when the entire nation was seduced (see Isaiah 57:7-9; 31:1-3; Ezekiel 16 and 23) into the trap of spiritual and political compromise in order to hobnob with top kings, generals and diplomats of that day:

When you enter the land which YHVH your God is giving you, and you take possession of it and live in it, and you say, “I will appoint a king over me like all the nations who are around me,” you shall in fact appoint a king over you whom YHVH your God chooses. One from among your countrymen you shall appoint as king over yourselves. You may not put a foreigner over yourselves, anyone who is not your countryman (Deuteronomy 17:14-15)

Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. And they said to him, “Behold, you have grown old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint us a king to judge us like all the nations.” But the matter was displeasing in the sight of Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed to YHVH. And YHVH said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people regarding all that they say to you, because they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being King over them. Like all the deeds which they have done since the day that I brought them up from Egypt even to this day – in that they have abandoned Me and served other gods – so they are doing to you as well . . . Yet the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel, and they said, “No, but there shall be a king over us, so that we also may be like all the nations, and our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.” Now after Samuel had heard all the words of the people, he repeated them in the Lord’s hearing (1 Samuel 8:4-8, 19-21)

The God of Israel is a good judge of character. When He addresses his people, He reveals their ‘heart secrets’ – their carnal desire to fit in to a rebellious and pagan world: “But you said, ‘It is hopeless! No! For I have loved strangers, and I will walk after them’” (Jeremiah 2:25). God’s perspective on this issue is adamant and dogmatic. Addressing His people, he emphatically declares: “And whatever comes into your mind certainly will not come about, when you say: ‘We will be like the nations, like the families of the lands, serving wood and stone’” (Ezekiel 20:32)

Israel’s desire to have a seat at the table with the international power-brokers continues up to our day, even though the majority of those groups look upon the Jewish state with barely concealed antipathy. Superpowers and Arab ‘peace partners’/ ‘potential peace partners’ avoid displays of warmth and friendliness to Israel. Yet the Jewish state keeps bending over backward as it attempts to win the favor of these cold suitors. Here is another intercessory challenge: to pray that the Jewish people and our leaders will receive clear revelation and strategies regarding the true hearts of our quasi-allies and avowed enemies alike – and will respond according to God’s perspectives, values and strategies.

Stumbling stone #4 – Narcissism and materialism

The biblical prophets spoke plainly about the spiritual condition of the daughters of Zion, who focused in ancient days on outer appearance while ignoring godly virtues (see 1 Peter 3:3-5):

Moreover, YHVH said, “Because the daughters of Zion are haughty and walk with heads held high and seductive eyes, and go along with mincing steps and jingle the anklets on their feet – YHVH will afflict the scalp of the daughters of Zion with scabs, and YHVH will make their foreheads bare. On that day YHVH will take away the beauty of their anklets, headbands, crescent ornaments, dangling earrings, bracelets, veils, headdresses, ankle chains, sashes, perfume boxes, amulets, finger rings, nose rings, festive robes, outer garments, shawls, purses, papyrus garments, undergarments, headbands, and veils. Now it will come about that instead of balsam oil there will be a stench; instead of a belt, a rope; instead of well-set hair, a plucked-out scalp; instead of fine clothes, a robe of sackcloth; and branding instead of beauty” (Isaiah 3:16-124).

Looking into days yet future, Isaiah prophesies that there are some future aspects of the same dynamic which will yet be purified by the God of Jacob:

“When YHVH has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion and purged the bloodshed of Jerusalem from her midst, by the spirit of judgment and the spirit of burning, then YHVH will create over the entire area of Mount Zion and over her assemblies a cloud by day, and smoke, and the brightness of a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory will be a canopy” (Isaiah 4:4-5)

The God of Isaac warns His people that spiritual temptations come when God pours out material blessings. He cautions His nation that prosperity raises challenges of its own (see Ezekiel 18 & 20):

When you have eaten and are satisfied, you shall bless YHVH your God for the good land which He has given you. Be careful that you do not forget YHVH your God by failing to keep His commandments, His ordinances, and His statutes which I am commanding you today. Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, and you build good houses and live in them, and when your herds and your flocks increase, and your silver and gold increase, and everything that you have increases, then your heart will become proud and you will forget YHVH your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the House of Slavery. He who led you through the great and terrible wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions, and its thirsty ground where there was no water. He who brought water for you out of the rock of flint. In the wilderness it was He who fed you manna which your fathers did not know, in order to humble you and in order to put you to the test, to do good for you in the end. Otherwise, you may say in your heart, “My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth.” But you are to remember YHVH your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, in order to confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day (Deuteronomy 8:10-18)

We are thankful for the blessing of the God of Jacob upon the fledgling Jewish state. And herein lies another intercessory challenge: to pray that the Jewish people and our leaders will receive spiritual revelation that these material blessings are an unmerited gracious gift from YHVH, and not that our brilliance and hard work have earned us this wealth.

Stumbling stone #5 – Idolatry and uncleanness

The testimony of the Hebrew prophets is painfully clear: the Jewish nation repeatedly abandoned pure worship of YHVH and turned to the demonic and pagan worship of its neighbors (Psalm 106:34-40; 2 Kings 17:9-13; 2 Chronicles 24:18). God’s strategic response is also clear: YHVH would turn to the Gentiles and offer them access to Israel’s spiritual blessings: “They have made Me jealous with what is not God. They have provoked Me to anger with their idols. So I will make them jealous with those who are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation” (Deuteronomy 32:21).

The God of Jacob promises that, as He gets ready to re-establish His kingdom on earth as it is in Heaven, He will burn away all idolatry from the Jewish people, as He orchestrated in the days of King Josiah:

Moreover, Josiah removed the mediums, the spiritists, the household idols, the idols, and all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, so that he might fulfill the words of the Teaching which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the House of YHVH (2 Kings 23:24)

I will first repay them double for their wrongdoing and their sin, because they have defiled My land. They have filled My inheritance with the carcasses of their detestable idols and their abominations (Jeremiah 16:18)

On that day a fountain will be opened for the House of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for defilement. And it will come about on that day, declares YHVH of armies, that I will eliminate the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered. And I will also remove the prophets and the unclean spirit from the land. (Zechariah 13:2)

This future prophetic process is summed up by Hosea. A Last Days revival will occur, and on that day, Israel will turn, trembling and will bow before her true Messiah:

For the sons of Israel will live for many days without a king or leader, without sacrifice or memorial stone, and without ephod or household idols. Afterward the sons of Israel will return and seek YHVH their God and David their king. And they will come trembling to YHVH and to His goodness in the Last Days (Hosea 3:4-5)

Our intercessory challenge: to pray for divine revelation for the Jewish people and religious leaders, to recognize unclean spiritual sources and teachings and leaders, to repent individually and nationally for the many facets involved, and to ask YHVH for deep and full cleansing from all physical and spiritual impurity.

Stumbling stone #6 – Division

The civil war and tribal divisions that occurred in the days of King Solomon’s son Rehoboam, still continue in our day. The division between streams of the Jewish people may not be clearly defined tribally in our day, but the prophetic reality of this division is clearly laid out by the Jewish prophets:

Then I cut in pieces my second staff Union, to break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel (Zechariah 11:14)

I have watched over them to uproot them, tear them down, ruin, destroy, and bring disaster on them, declares YHVH (Jeremiah 31:27-28)

On a more positive note, Jeremiah tells us that, in spite of the grievous division, “neither Israel nor Judah has been forsaken by his God, YHVH of armies, although their land is full of guilt before the Holy One of Israel” (Jeremiah 51:5).

The divisions will be healed, and the scattered twelve tribes will be restored back to their Promised Land:

And He will lift up a flag for the nations and assemble the banished ones of Israel, and will gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth (Isaiah 11:12)

For behold, days are coming, declares YHVH, when I will restore the fortunes of My people Israel and Judah. YHVH says, I will also bring them back to the land that I gave to their forefathers, and they shall take possession of it (Jeremiah 30:3)

In those days the House of Judah will walk with the House of Israel, and they will come together from the land of the north to the land that I gave your fathers as an inheritance (Jeremiah 3:18)

Weeping will be involved in the process of return (Jeremiah 50:4), and the New Covenant will be fully established with the nation of Israel: “Behold, days are coming, declares YHVH, when I will make a new covenant with the House of Israel and the House of Judah” (Jeremiah 31:31).

In that day all divisions will be healed between the divided tribes of Israel: “Behold, I am going to take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, his companions. And I will put them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in My hand” (Ezekiel 37:19).

Our intercessory challenge: these prophecies over the Jewish people are also invitations to us – to ask God to quicken the fulfilment of His promises to the Jewish people, speedily and in our day.

Stumbling stone #7 – Fear

Moses reached far into the future and described the Exile of his precious Jewish people. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he spoke over Israel regarding their sojourn in the diaspora: “In the morning you will say, ‘If only it were evening!’ And at evening you will say, ‘If only it were morning!’ because of the terror of your heart which you fear, and the sight of your eyes which you will see” (Deuteronomy 28:67). We are thankful the beginning of the gracious restoration and return to the Land of Israel that we are seeing in our day. We recognize that the enemy of both our souls and our people is not pleased (as per Revelation 12:13): “And when the dragon saw that he was thrown down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child.”

The 20^th century has seen much cause for fear among the Jewish people – from Hitler to Stalin and Islamist terror. The citizens of Israel also know something about sirens, rockets, missiles, bombs and assorted terror attacks involving car-rammings, guns and knives.

The words of Proverbs 3:25 and Isaiah 8:10 comfort us here: “Do not be afraid of sudden terror, nor of the destruction from wicked people when it comes . . . You all may devise a plan, but it will be overthrown. You may speak of a plan of action, but it will not stand – for God is with us [Immanuel].”

And let us not forget who our God is, as it is written: “A bent reed He will not break off and a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish” (Isaiah 42:3). This is our confidence.

Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are greater than those who are with them (2 Kings 6:16)

You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4)

The Spirit of YHVH God is upon me, because YHVH anointed me to bring good news to the humble. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim release to captives and freedom to prisoners; To proclaim the favorable year of YHVH and the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn; To grant those who mourn in Zion, giving them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the cloak of praise instead of a disheartened spirit. So they will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of YHVH, that He may be glorified. (Isaiah 61:1-3)

Our intercessory challenge: to ask God to use us and other believers to comfort those Jewish people who are dealing with fear, with the same comfort with which we ourselves are being comforted by God (2 Corinthians 1:4).

How should we then pray?

Pray for divine revelation to be imparted to Israel’s people and leadership on all seven of the points above

Pray for fear to be melted away and for a new heart to be given to the sons and daughters of Jacob

Pray for the outpouring of Holy Spirit on Israel, the Spirit of grace and supplications, leading to national salvation through Messiah Yeshua

Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s prophetic Jewish army throughout the earth

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal) through: www.davidstent.org